Relation Between CD8+T Lymphocyte Infiltration and Efficacy of Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Triple-negative Breast Cancer

Objective To investigate the relation between the characteristics of CD8+T lymphocyte infiltration and the prognosis of triple-negative breast cancer patients.

Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinicopathological data of 126 patients with triple-negative breast cancer undergoing preoperative neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Immunohistochemical staining was used to analyze the relation between CD8+T lymphocyte infiltration and clinicopathological characteristics. Kaplan-Meier method was used to draw the survival curve, and Cox risk ratio regression model was used to analyze the prognostic factors affecting disease-free survival time (DFS).

Results High-density CD8+Tils was associated with age < 60 years old, high pathological grade and high clinical stage (P < 0.05). The pCR rate of high-density CD8+Tils group was higher than that of the low-density group (66.7% vs. 19.8%, P=0.000). The median DFS of the high-density group was significantly longer than that of the low-density group (49 vs. 25 months, P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that high pathological grade, tumor diameter > 2 cm, lymph node metastasis, vascular invasion and CD8+Tils low-density infiltration were factors for poor prognosis (P < 0.05), and CD8+Tils was an independent prognostic factor.

Conclusion CD8+Tils may be an independent prognostic indicator for triple-negative breast cancer. The patients with high-density infiltration have high postoperative pCR rate, long DFS and better long-term efficacy.