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Updated: Nov 2, 2025
A Mouse Model of Incompletely Resected Soft Tissue Sarcoma for Testing Neoadjuvant Therapies
Published on: July 28, 2020
T-regulatory cells predict clinical outcome in soft tissue sarcoma patients: a clinico-pathological study
Maria A Smolle1, Laurin Herbsthofer2, Barbara Granegger1
1Department of Orthopaedics and Trauma, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria.
Background:
Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are generally considered non-immunogenic, although specific subtypes respond to immunotherapy. Antitumour response within the tumour microenvironment relies on a balance between inhibitory and activating signals for tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). This study analysed TILs and immune checkpoint molecules in STS, and assessed their prognostic impact regarding local recurrence (LR), distant metastasis (DM), and overall survival (OS).
Methods:
One-hundred and ninety-two surgically treated STS patients (median age: 63.5 years; 103 males [53.6%]) were retrospectively included. Tissue microarrays were constructed, immunohistochemistry for PD-1, PD-L1, FOXP3, CD3, CD4, and CD8 performed, and staining assessed with multispectral imaging. TIL phenotype abundance and immune checkpoint markers were correlated with clinical and outcome parameters (LR, DM, and OS).
Results:
Significant differences between histology and all immune checkpoint markers except for FOXP3+ and CD3-PD-L1+ cell subpopulations were found. Higher levels of PD-L1, PD-1, and any TIL phenotype were found in myxofibrosarcoma as compared to leiomyosarcoma (all p < 0.05). The presence of regulatory T cells (Tregs) was associated with increased LR risk (p = 0.006), irrespective of margins. Other TILs or immune checkpoint markers had no significant impact on outcome parameters.
Conclusions:
TIL and immune checkpoint marker levels are most abundant in myxofibrosarcoma. High Treg levels are independently associated with increased LR risk, irrespective of margins.
