KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The study aimed to investigate the effects of radio(chemo)therapy on circulating monocyte subsets in HNSCC.
- Researchers noticed a need for further investigation into the potential of peripheral blood monocyte subsets and CXCL11 as indicators in HNSCC therapy response and individual immunological status.
Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a prevalent and diverse malignancy affecting the oral cavity, pharynx, and larynx. Standard treatments include surgery and radio(chemo)therapy, significantly influencing the tumor microenvironment (TME) and immune cell functions. However, the specific impact of radio(chemo)therapy on the distribution and characteristics of circulating monocyte subsets in HNSCC remains unclear.
Christian Idel and the team aimed to investigate the impact of radio(chemo)therapy on the distribution and characteristics of circulating monocyte subsets in patients with HNSCC.
They performed an inclusive analysis of adhesion molecules and chemokine receptors CD11a (integrin-α L; LFA-1), CD11b (integrin-α M; Mac-1), CD11c (integrin-α X), CX3CR1 (CX3CL1 receptor), and checkpoint molecule PD-L1 (programmed cell death ligand-1) expression patterns upon radio(chemo) therapeutic treatment using flow cytometry. Furthermore, ELISA measurements performed a comprehensive analysis of plasma cytokines before and after treatment.
Partial recovery of circulating monocytes in patients with HNSCC was observed upon radio(chemo) therapeutic treatment, with varying effects of the individual therapy regimen. PD-L1 expression on non-classical monocytes significantly correlated with the individual plasma levels of chemokine CXCL11 (C-X-C motif chemokine 11).
The study concluded that further comprehensive investigations on larger patient cohorts are necessary to elucidate the meaningfulness of peripheral blood monocyte subsets and chemokine CXCL11 as potential bioliquid indicators in HNSCC concerning therapy response and the individual immunological situation.
The study received open-access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38609887/
Idel C, Fleckner J, Plötze-Martin K, et al. (2024). “Partial recovery of peripheral blood monocyte subsets in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients upon radio(chemo)therapy is associated with decreased plasma CXCL11.” BMC Cancer. 2024 Apr 12;24(1):459. doi: 10.1186/s12885-024-12177-x. PMID: 38609887; PMCID: PMC11015641.
