Department of Oncology, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Chinese Medicine Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Tianjin, China.
Graduate School, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
Contrast Media Mol Imaging. 2022 Aug 18;2022:3444360. doi: 10.1155/2022/3444360. eCollection 2022.
As the number and proportion of lymphocyte subsets are an important indicator of the immune function, an in depth understanding of the immune function of patients with malignant tumor has important clinical values for the treatment, prognosis, and evaluation of the disease. This retrospective study was to evaluate the clinical value of the absolute counts of lymphocyte subsets as potential blood biomarkers for progression and prognosis in breast cancer patients.
A total of 237 BC patients and 55 age-matched female normal healthy donors were included in this study. Flow cytometry was used to determine the absolute counts and the percentages of CD3, CD4, CD8, B, and NK cells. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was used to evaluate the accuracy of absolute count of lymphocyte subsets in the curative efficacy assessment. The clinicopathological parameters influencing the disease progression were determined by Cox proportional hazards regression. Progression-free survival (PFS) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method with the log-rank test. Results: Compared with the healthy donors, the absolute counts of lymphocyte subsets in patients decreased significantly. ROC analysis showed that the area under the curve of the CD4 absolute count was 90% (95% confidence interval 0.859-0.940), and the sensitivity and specificity were 80.9% and 85.3%, respectively. The analysis of Cox regression showed that the cutoff value of the CD4 absolute count ≥451 cells/L might be a favorable prognostic factor. Multivariate analysis of prognostic factors of PFS showed that the CD4 and CD8 absolute count were independent factors for predicting PFS.
The remarkably impaired absolute counts of the CD3, CD4, CD8, B, and NK cells in patients with breast cancer can be used as potential susceptible biomarkers to evaluate the patient's immune status. The higher level of CD4 and CD8 absolute counts probably contributed to the longer PFS and favorable outcome of BC patients.
淋巴细胞亚群的数量和比例是免疫功能的重要指标，深入了解恶性肿瘤患者的免疫功能对治疗、预后和疾病评估具有重要的临床价值。本回顾性研究旨在评估淋巴细胞亚群绝对计数作为乳腺癌患者进展和预后的潜在血液生物标志物的临床价值。
本研究共纳入 237 例 BC 患者和 55 名年龄匹配的女性正常健康供体。采用流式细胞术测定 CD3、CD4、CD8、B 和 NK 细胞的绝对计数和百分比。受试者工作特征曲线（ROC）用于评估淋巴细胞亚群绝对计数在疗效评估中的准确性。Cox 比例风险回归确定影响疾病进展的临床病理参数。采用 Kaplan-Meier 方法和对数秩检验估计无进展生存期（PFS）。
与健康供体相比，患者的淋巴细胞亚群绝对计数显著降低。ROC 分析显示，CD4 绝对计数的曲线下面积为 90%（95%置信区间 0.859-0.940），灵敏度和特异度分别为 80.9%和 85.3%。Cox 回归分析表明，CD4 绝对计数≥451 个细胞/L 可能是一个有利的预后因素。PFS 预后因素的多变量分析表明，CD4 和 CD8 绝对计数是预测 PFS 的独立因素。
乳腺癌患者 CD3、CD4、CD8、B 和 NK 细胞的绝对计数显著受损，可作为潜在的易感生物标志物，用于评估患者的免疫状态。较高水平的 CD4 和 CD8 绝对计数可能有助于延长 BC 患者的 PFS 和改善预后。
