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CD4+ T-Cell Immune Response to Large B-Cell Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Predicts Patient Outcome

From the Division of Hematology and Internal Medicine, Department of Immunology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN.

Address reprint to Thomas E. Witzig, MD, Division of Hematology and Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, 200 First St SW, Rochester, Minnesota 55905; email: witzig{at}mayo.edu

PURPOSE: Previous studies in patients with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) and other malignancies have suggested that the presence of host infiltrates in the tumors of these patients may predict a better outcome. This study was undertaken to determine the prognostic importance of the presence of T cells in the biopsy specimens of patients with B-cell NHL.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Seventy-two patients with diffuse large B-cell NHL were prospectively evaluated at a single institution between 1987 and 1994. The percentage of CD3+, CD3+/HLA-DR+, CD4+, CD8+, and natural killer cells was determined by flow cytometry in the pretreatment diagnostic biopsy specimen and correlated with patient outcome.

RESULTS: An increase in the percentage CD4+ T cells in the pretreatment tumor biopsies significantly correlated with patient outcome. The percent of CD4+ T cells was also highly correlated with CD3+/HLA-DR+, CD45RO+, and low L-selectin (CD62L) expression, indicating that the CD4+ T cells are activated memory T-helper cells. Those patients with increased numbers of CD4+ T cells, compared with other patients, had a significantly longer 5-year failure-free survival (72% v 43%, respectively; P = .04), as well as a significantly longer 5-year overall survival (65% v 38%, respectively; P = .05). When evaluated in a multivariate model, the International Prognostic Index and more than 20% infiltrating CD4+ T cells in the pretreatment biopsy were significant independent predictors of relapse-free and overall survival.

CONCLUSION: The presence of increased numbers of activated CD4+ cells in the area of B-cell diffuse large-cell NHL predicts a better prognosis. This finding provides a strong rationale for the investigation of cellular immunotherapy in B-cell NHL.

Presented in part at the Thirty-Fifth Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Atlanta GA, May 15-18, 1999.

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