title: Head and neck squamous carcinomas with exophytic and endophytic type of growth have the same prognosis after surgery and adjuvant radiotherapy.
abstract: Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) are characterized by exophytic or endophytic growth. We hypothesized that the growth pattern predicts outcome and associates with distinct clinical and immunological profiles. Tumors obtained from 60 HNSCC patients treated with surgery and adjuvant radiotherapy were identified as exophytic or endophytic. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) at 42 months was determined. In a subsets of 30 patients (22 exophytic and 8 endophytic) tumor stroma and parenchyma were evaluated for infiltrating CD4(+) and CD8(+) T, dendritic, myeloid and FOXP3(+) regulatory T cells (Treg) and expression of immunosuppressive cytokines by immunohistochemistry. The localization and frequency of positive cells were determined microscopically and analyzed by hierarchical clustering to distinguish exophytic versus endophytic tumors. 34/60 patients had exophytic and 26/60 endophytic tumors. No differences in clinicopathologic data, disease progression or RFS were seen between the two cohorts. Infiltrates of CD3(+)CD8(+) T cells were larger in endophytic than exophytic tumors, while FOXP3(+) Treg, TGF-β(+), IL-10(+), Arg-1(+), CD11b(+) cells were equally prominent in both. FOXP3(+) Treg accumulated in endophytic tumor nests, while the exophytic tumor stroma was enriched in IL-10(+) cells (both at p < 0.05). Hierarchical clustering based on immunophenotyping failed to identify different clusters in these two tumor types. However, CD68(+) macrophages and FOXP3(+) Treg showed a distinct distribution. The HNSCC growth pattern did not predict RFS. Although higher numbers and differences in localization of immunosuppressive cells in endophytic versus exophytic tumors were observed, no significant relationship was established between the growth pattern and the immune profile of infiltrating lymphocytes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Malgorzata
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Harasymczuk
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Gooding
authors.forename: Aleksandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kruk-Zagajewska
authors.forename: Jerzy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wojtowicz
authors.forename: Grzegorz
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dworacki
authors.forename: Hanna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tomczak
authors.forename: Witold
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Szyfter
authors.forename: Theresa L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Whiteside
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D015331:Cohort Studies; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D007822:Laryngeal Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D007825:Laryngectomy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant; D000077195:Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck; D016896:Treatment Outcome