[Preliminary study on lymphocyte subsets of sentinel lymph nodes in breast cancer patients].
OBJECTIVE
To study the lymphocyte subsets of sentinel lymph nodes (SLN) in breast cancer patients.


METHODS
Flow cytometry was used to analyze the markers on the surface of lymphocytes such as CD3, CD4, CD8, CD16 and CD19 in the sentinel lymph node of breast cancer.


RESULTS
When lymph node metastasis did not occur, there was no significant difference in the number of CD3(+) T, CD4(+) T, CD8(+) T, CD16 NK and CD19 B cells between SLN cells and non-SLN cells. With lymph node metastasis, the proportion of CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells was significantly changed, CD8(+) T cells (66.15 +/- 5.97) were the predominant cells instead of CD4(+) T cells (69.07 +/- 5.02), whereas no significant difference in CD3(+) T, CD16 NK and CD19 B cells.


CONCLUSIONS
The CD4(+) to CD8(+) T cell ratio in sentinel lymph nodes with metastasis is reversed in breast cancer patients. This might results from changes in microenvironment due to tumor cell invasion.
Department of General Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, China.
Shui
S
Wang
Ping
P
Fan
Zheng-yan
ZY
Wu
D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D016516:CD4-CD8 Ratio; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000473:pathology; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000473:pathology; D018270:Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D016131:Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology*; D021701:Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy