Flow cytometric evaluation of changes of immune function in neoplastic patients

Objective To investigate immune function in relation to location and stage of the disease in neoplastic patients.Methods Using flow cytometry and monoclonal antibodies to evaluate T lymphocyte subsets,NK cells,CD19 B cells of peripheral blood in normal and patients with non Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL),breast cancer and lung cancer.Results The CD4 T cells and helper/suppressor radio (CD4/CD8) were significantly lower and CD8 T cells was significantly higher in neoplastic patients than in normal controls ( P 0.005).The CD19 B cells and CD4 T cells significantly decreased,while those of CD8 T lymphocytes markedly increased with a reduction of CD4/CD8 ratio in NHL patients ( P 0.0005).There were no evidently changes of various lymphocyte subsets in breast cancer.Significant decreases of CD3,CD4,CD4/CD8 ( P 0.0005) and increases of NK cells were observed in lung cancer.CD4/CD8 ratio was significantly lower in patients with metastatic lung cancer than in those without metastases ( P 0.005).Conclusions Neoplastic patient's immune function was related to location and stage of the disease.Flow cytometry is an efficient method for detecting immune function.\;