Measurement of CD4~+ CD25~(high) Foxp3~+ regulatory T cells in peripheral blood of patients with cancer and clinical significance

Objective To study the expression of CD4+ CD25high Foxp3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) in peripheral blood monouclear cell(PBMC) of patients with cancer,and explore the significance of Tregs in pathogenesis of cancer.Methods The proportions of CD4+ CD25+/ CD4+,CD4+ CD25high / CD4+T cells in PBMC were examined with flow cytometry in 61 patients with cancer at different stages,and the expression levels of Foxp3+ in CD4+ CD25+ and CD4+ CD25high T cells were analyzed,and compared with 32 normal control samples.Results Compared with normal controls,the proportions of CD4+ CD25+/ CD4+,CD4+ CD25high / CD4+T cells in PBMC of patients with cancer at stageⅠand stage Ⅱ had no significant difference(P0.05);but in those patients at stage Ⅲ and stage Ⅳ,they were higher than those in normal controls,the difference was significant(P0.05).The proportions of CD4+CD25+/ CD4+,CD4+ CD25high / CD4+T cells were higher in PBMC of patients with cancer with higher histophathological grade.The expression levels of Foxp3+ in CD4+ CD25+ and CD4+ CD25high T cells in patients with cancer were also higher than those in normal controls(P0.01),the differences were significant(P0.01).Conclusion The increase of Tregs in patients with cancer may be related to tumor progression and it shows immunological abnormality in patients with cancer.The regular detection of CD4+ CD25+,CD4+ CD25high and CD4+ CD25high Foxp3+ in PBMC will contribute to understanding the patient’s condition and judging prognosis.