The role of CD68 positive tam in development of non-small cell lung cancer

Abstract

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a leading cause of cancer related mortality. Main factors of development of NSCLC are many immune cells involved in tumor microenvironment. Infiltration with CD68 positive tumor associated macrophages (TAM) in the tumor stroma or in the tumor islets is associated with prognosis and stage of the disease for a long time. Investigating immunohistochemically 40 patients with NSCLC we discovered that 25% of patients with metastasis in lymph nodes had low infiltration with TAM in the tumor border, while 35.7% of the patients without metastasis- the infiltration was high (х2=5.19; р=0.023). We also discovered that all patients in stage I and 66.7% of the patients in stage II had low infiltration with TAM in the tumor border, while 100% of those in stage IV had high infiltration in the border (x2=5.44; p=0.02). In addition, we observed that 52.9% of the patients in T3-4 the infiltration of the tumor border with TAM was high, while only 16.7% of those in T1-2 had high infiltration (x2=2.92; p=0.087). In investigated by our team lung cancers, clear associations were established between CD68 positive cells density in the tumor border and stage of the disease.

Keywords

• NSCLC
• TAM
• CD68
• prognosis