乳腺癌患者外周血CD4^+CD25^+Foxp3^+调节性T细胞水平的检测及意义

Measurement of CD4^+CD25^+Foxp3^+ regulatory T cells in peripheral blood of breast cancer patients and its significance

目的:探讨乳腺癌患者外周血CD4+CD25+Foxp3+调节性T细胞(Treg)水平检测的意义。方法:流式细胞术检测74例乳腺癌患者与30例健康对照者外周血CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg占CD4+T细胞百分比,分析CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg细胞水平与乳腺癌患者临床病理特征及相关免疫组化指标的关系。结果:乳腺癌患者外周血CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg占CD4+T细胞的百分比高于健康对照者[(9.15±2.24)%vs.(2.29±1.36)%],差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。统计分析显示,乳腺癌患者外周血CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg细胞水平与肿瘤组织学分级、淋巴结转移、pTNM分期以及HER-2、pS2、nm23的表达有关(均P<0.05),而与肿瘤大小、病理类型以及雌激素受体(ER)、孕激素受体(PR)、p53、Ki-67表达无关(均P>0.05)。进一步相关性分析显示,CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg细胞水平与肿瘤组织学分级、淋巴结转移数、pTNM分期、HER-2的表达呈正相关(r=0.583,r=0.333,r=0.919,r=0.604,均P<0.05)而与pS2、nm23表达呈负相关(r=-0.229,r=-0.401,均P<0.05)。结论:乳腺癌患者外周血CD4+CD25+Foxp3+Treg细胞水平升高,并与与乳腺癌的进展、转移密切相关,对其检测可能有助于患者预后及治疗效果的评估。

Objective： To investigate the value of determination of the peripheral blood level of CD4＋CD25＋Foxp3＋ regulatory T cells （Treg） in breast cancer patients. Methods： The percentage of CD4＋CD25＋Foxp3＋Treg cells in CD4＋ T cells in the peripheral blood from 74 breast cancer patients and 30 healthy controls were measured by flow cytometry. The relations of CD4＋CD25＋Foxp3＋Treg cell level with the clinicopathologic factors and relevant immunohistochemical parameters of the breast cancer patients were analyzed. Results： The percentage of CD4＋CD25＋Foxp3＋Treg cells in CD4＋ T cells of breast cancer patients was higher than that of healthy controls [（9.15±2.24）% vs. （2.29%±1.36%）], and the difference had statistical significance （P〈0.05）. Statistical analyses showed that the peripheral blood level of CD4＋CD25＋Foxp3＋Treg cells of breast cancer patients was significantly related to histological grade, lymph node metastasis, pTNM stage and expressions of HER-2, pS2 and nm23 （r=0.583, r=0.333, r=0.919, r=0.604, all P〈0.05）, and irrelevant to tumor size, pathological type and the expressions of estrogen receptor （ER）, progesterone receptor （PR）, p53 and Ki-67 （all P〉0.05）. Further correlation analyses demonstrated that CD4＋CD25＋Foxp3＋Treg cell level was positively correlated with histological grade, number of lymph node metastasis, pTNM stage and Her-2 expression and negatively correlated with pS2 and nm23 expression （r=–0.229, r=-0.401, all P〈0.05）. Conclusion： The peripheral blood level of CD4＋CD25＋Foxp3＋Treg cells is increased in breast cancer patients, which also is closely related to the progression and metastasis of breast cancer. So its determination may offer certain implications for evaluation of the prognosis and therapeutic effects of the patients.