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Updated: May 26, 2026
In Vitro Assay to Study Tumor-macrophage Interaction
Published on: August 1, 2019
High expression of tumor-infiltrating macrophages correlates with poor prognosis in patients with diffuse large
Qi-chun Cai1, Hong Liao, Su-xia Lin
1State Key Laboratory of Oncology in Southern China, Department of Medical Oncology, Lymphoma Centre, Cancer Center of Sun Yat-sen University, 651 Dong Feng Road East, Guangzhou, 510060, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
Abstract:
Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is characterized by its clinical and biological heterogeneity. Although the International Prognostic Index (IPI) provides a clinical model for risk stratification of patients with DLBCL, notable variability in outcome is still observed within the same IPI category. Tumor-infiltrating macrophages (also called Tumor-associated macrophages) are the major component in the microenvironment of DLBCL. Their correlation with the prognosis of DLBCL remains controversial. Using a CD68 antibody in immunohistochemical analysis, we studied the expression of CD68 in 112 Chinese patients with DLBCL, with 65 patients (58%) categorized as low CD68 expression and 47 patients (42%) as high CD68 expression. The complete response (CR) rate of patients with low CD68 expression was higher than that with high CD68 expression (66.1% vs. 51.6%), but there was no statistical significance (P=0.060). The median survival time of patients with low CD68 expression was not achieved and that of high expression was 41 months (P=0.029). The results suggest that higher expression of CD68 tended to yield poor treatment outcome of DLBCL.
