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Updated: Jun 25, 2026

Isolation and Characterization of Neutrophils with Anti-Tumor Properties
Published on: June 19, 2015
Natural killer activity of peripheral-blood mononuclear cells in breast cancer patients
Md Zahidunnabi Dewan1, Masahiro Takada, Hiroshi Terunuma
1Department of Molecular Virology, Graduate School, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan.
Abstract:
Natural killer (NK) activity of immune cells plays a central role in host defense against cancer and virus-infected cells. Natural cytotoxic activity of peripheral-blood mononuclear cells was assessed by a Calcein-AM release assay in 89 subjects. In the present study, we here demonstrated that NK activities of peripheral-blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from breast cancer patients were significantly lower as compared with that of healthy individuals. There were significant differences in the NK activities of PBMCs from HER2-negative breast cancer patients as compared with HER2-positive patients. Our results suggest that NK activity of PBMCs is lower in breast cancer indicating a role for immunological natural host defense mechanisms against cancer.
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