Objective  To investigate the relationship between CXC chemokine ligand 12(CXCL12) expression and tumor associated macrophages(TAMs) in primary breast cancer,metastatic breast cancer,precancerous lesions of breast,and related clinical significance.

Methods  The expression of CXCL12 and the infiltration of TAMs were evaluated by MaxVision immunohistochemistry staining in 127 cases of primary breast cancer,71 cases of metastatic breast cancer,100 cases of atypical ductal hyperplasia(ADH) and 40 cases of adenosis tissues.

Results  The positive rates of CXCL12 and TAMs expression were 12.5% and 7.5% in adenosis tissues,39% and 18% in ADH tissues,63.8% and 57.5% in primary breast cancer tissues,78.9% and 80.3% in metastatic breast cancer tissues,respectively. There were significant differences in the expression of CXCL12 and TAMs between breast cancer and precancerous lesions of breast(P<0.001),and between primary breast cancer and metastatic breast cancer(P<0.05). There were significantly positive correlation between the expression of CXCL12 and lymph node metastasis,distant metastasis,TNM stage(P<0.05),and between the infiltration of TAMs and lymph node metastasis,distant metastasis,TNM stage(P<0.05). The expression of CXCL12 had positive correlation with TAMs in breast cancer and metastatic breast cancer(both P<0.001).

Conclusion  CXCL12 and TAMs play an important role in the occurrence and progression of breast cancer,and their joint detection may be the new prognostic marker for lymph node metastasis and distant metastasis from breast cancer.