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Updated: Jul 25, 2025

Isolation of Leukocytes from the Murine Tissues at the Maternal-Fetal Interface
Published on: May 21, 2015
Characterization of the immune environment in pregnancy-associated breast cancer
Konstantinos Venetis1, Elham Sajjadi1,2, Mariia Ivanova1
1Division of Pathology, IEO, European Institute of Oncology IRCCS, Milan, 20141, Italy.
Abstract:
Pregnancy-associated breast cancer (PrBC) is a rare and clinically challenging condition. Specific immune mechanisms and pathways are involved in maternal-fetal tolerance and tumor-host immunoediting. The comprehension of the molecular processes underpinning this immune synergy in PrBC is needed to improve patients' clinical management. Only a few studies focused on the immune biology of PrBC and attempted to identify bona fide biomarkers. Therefore, clinically actionable information remains extremely puzzling for these patients. In this review article, we discuss the current knowledge on the immune environment of PrBC, in comparison with pregnancy-unrelated breast cancer and in the context of maternal immune changes during pregnancy. A particular emphasis is given to the actual role of potential immune-related biomarkers for PrBC clinical management.
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