Temporal changes in immune cell composition and cytokines in response to chemoradiation in rectal cancer

We measured systemic changes in the immune response in 92 patients receiving preoperative chemoradiation therapy (CRT) and subsequent surgery for rectal cancer. The peripheral blood was sampled five times from the onset of CRT until surgery. Lymphocytes decreased continuously during CRT but increased after CRT. The increased lymphocyte population was predominantly CD8+ T lymphocytes, which accounted for a significantly larger proportion in patients without residual lymph node metastasis than in those with residual lymph node metastasis. Neutrophils and monocytes decreased during the initial two weeks of CRT but were maintained or increased afterwards. Neutrophil and monocyte counts were significantly lower in patients with a pCR (pathologic complete response) than in those without a pCR two weeks after CRT began but not at the initiation of CRT. All cytokines showed dramatic changes one month after the termination of CRT. Cytokines related to the antitumour immune response increased, and those related to tumour progression decreased. The predictive value of cytokines was not clear. In short, we observed that immune components in peripheral blood are affected by CRT and show dynamic changes over time. We identified biomarker candidates to predict the pathologic response in the future.