J Korean Surg Soc.
1998 Dec;55(Suppl):997-1003.
Clinical Significance of Lymphocyte Subpopulations in Peripheral Blood
from Gastric Cancer Patients
- Affiliations
-
- 1Department of Surgery, 1Clinical Pathology, College of Medicine, Catholic University of Taegu-Hyosung, Taegu, Korea.
Abstract
- BACKGROUND : There are plenty of documented observations of gastric cancer patients having suppressed cellular immunity, and this immunity may be correlated to recurrence. We studied the changes in the peripheral T-lymphocyte subpopulations in gastric cancer patients and their predictive roles for recurrence.
METHODS
: Lymphocyte subpopulations in peripheral blood from thirty-eight gastric cancer patients
who were operated on at Taegu Catholic Medical Center from September 1995 to February 1997 were
measured by 3-color direct immunofluorescence analysis with a Coulter S-plus IV automatic counter.
RESULTS
: CD4 significantly increased with tumor size and depth of invasion although other immune
parameters, such as CD8, CD19, the CD4/CD8 ratio, and total lymphocyte count did not changed. In
the patients with lymph-node metastasis, increases in CD3 and CD4 and a decrease in CD19 were
observed. CD19 and the B lymphocyte count also decreased in advanced gastric cancer patients.
However, T-lymphocytes subpopulations did not significantly change with stage. There were significant
decreases in CD8 and in the T- & B-lymphocyte counts, without changes in CD4 and the CD4/CD8
ratio in the postoperative immune parameters.The preoperative values of the T- & B-lymphocyte counts
and CD8 and CD19 were lower in patients who had recurrences during six months to two years of
follow up, compared to recurrence-free patients.
CONCLUSIONS
: On the basis of these results, we found changes of T-lymphocyte subpopulations with
size, depth of invasion, and regional lymph node metastasis, but not with stage. Postoperatively, there
were significant decreases in the T- & B-lymphocyte counts. Suppressed immunity correlated with
recurrence, and preoperative evaluation of peripheral T-cell subpopulations may be helpful for predict
recurrence and for postoperative prognosis.