Publication

Intratumoral plasmacytoid dendritic cells associate with increased survival in patients with follicular lymphoma

Journal Paper/Review - May 23, 2011

Units
PubMed
Doi

Citation
Butsch R, Wälti S, Schaerer S, Braun J, Korol D, Probst-Hensch N, Moch H, Kurrer M. Intratumoral plasmacytoid dendritic cells associate with increased survival in patients with follicular lymphoma. Leuk Lymphoma 2011; 52:1230-8.
Type
Journal Paper/Review (English)
Journal
Leuk Lymphoma 2011; 52
Publication Date
May 23, 2011
Issn Electronic
1029-2403
Pages
1230-8
Brief description/objective

Gene array studies on follicular lymphoma (FL) have associated non-malignant tumor-infiltrating immune cells with patient survival. We examined the role of such cells detectable by immunohistochemistry in a tissue microarray, focusing on plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs). These cells physiologically produce interferon-α, which has been used in the therapy of FL. High numbers of pDCs are associated with increased survival, and so are high numbers of CD3+ T cells. The regular distribution of pDCs within T cell areas is reflected by a weak but significant correlation between pDCs and T cells. However, in multivariate Cox models, CD123 proved to be an independent prognostic factor. These findings support the hypothesis of an association of pDCs with better prognosis by producing interferon. Furthermore, due to a linear relationship between pDCs and survival shown by means of Kaplan-Meier plots, immunohistochemical staining of CD123 could serve as a prognostic tool for patients with FL.