[Morphometric cellular characteristics of the inflammatory infiltrate in nonirradiated and irradiated rectal cancer].

A morphometric analysis of the inflammatory infiltrate cells of the stroma and adjacent tissue of adenocarcinomas of the rectum was performed in 40 patients. As to therapeutic modality, the patients were divided into 4 groups of 10 patients in each. The 1st group was given surgery only, the 2nd group preoperative gamma-therapy at a dose of 19.5 Gy, the 3rd 30 Gy and the 4th 40 Gy. Integral fractions of lymphocytes, plasmocytes and eosinophils were determined on randomly selected sections using the point counting technique. It was shown that in adenocarcinomas of the rectum integral fractions of the above cells had similar values irrespective of tumor macroscopic shape, degree of differentiation and growth depth. Cellular reactions in the adjacent tissues were more noticeable than in tumor itself, and numerical values of the integral fractions of inflammatory infiltrate cells depended on growth depth. After irradiation a decrease in the lymphocyte integral fraction and an increase in the plasmocyte integral fraction were noted both in the stroma and adjacent tissues.