Immunosuppressive and cytogenetic effects of pelvic irradiation on the peripheral lymphocytes of patients with cervical cancer. One year follow-up.
The circulating lymphocytes of patients treated for cervical cancer were examined by four independent manners: by evaluation of T-cell proportion in peripheral blood, proliferative response upon PHA stimulation, PHA-induced leukocyte migration inhibition, and by concomitant chromosome aberration frequency. The immediate and longer-term effects of pelvic irradiation on T lymphocytes were investigated in 19 patients prior to, during, and immediately after radiotherapy, and then at subsequent intervals of two, three and five months. Radiotherapy caused profound depression of already diminished T-cell number and their proliferative response; both parameters gradually recovered during post-treatment period, and achieved their pretreatment values at the end of follow-up. The leukocyte migration inhibition was much less affected; it slightly deteriorated in the middle of post-treatment period, but reached the pretreatment level at the end of monitoring. The chromosome aberration frequency increased during irradiation in dose-dependent manner; it decreased gradually thereafter, but remained high during follow-up. Their elimination rate correlated with the recovery of T-cell number and proliferative response. However, at the end of monitoring, when all immunological parameters were completely recovered from harmful effect of irradiation, the percentage of chromosome aberrations remained high (12.5%), although significantly lower than the post-treatment one.
Vucković-Dekić
L
L
Institute of Oncology and Radiology, Beograd, Yugoslavia.
Spremo
B
B
Stanojević-Bakić
N
N
Garzicić
B
B
Durbaba
M
M
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002464:Cell Migration Inhibition; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations; D002877:Chromosomes, Human / Q000528:radiation effects*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000528:radiation effects; D018655:Lymphocyte Count / Q000528:radiation effects; D008875:Middle Aged; D010386:Pelvic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins / Q000494:pharmacology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects*; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology* / Q000532:radiotherapy*
D010835:Phytohemagglutinins