The B7-H3/CD3 immune phenotype identifies prognostic subgroups in neuroblastoma

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Immunology
• Pathology

Background:

• B7-H3 is an immune checkpoint molecule linked to poor prognosis in various cancers.
• Tumor immune evasion and B7-H3 expression are critical in determining cancer outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between B7-H3 expression, immune cell infiltration, and patient survival in malignant neuroblastic tumors.
• To identify a potential immune phenotype for predicting prognosis and guiding treatment strategies.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 81 patients with neuroblastoma or ganglioneuroblastoma.
• Immunohistochemistry was used to assess B7-H3 expression and infiltration of CD3+, CD4+, CD8+, CD20+, and CD68+ immune cells.

Main Results:

• High B7-H3 expression correlated with reduced CD8+ T-cell infiltration (p=0.045).
• Both high B7-H3 and low CD3+ T-cell infiltration were associated with worse overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS).
• A B7-H3 low/CD3 high phenotype demonstrated the most favorable prognosis, with a 14-fold increased hazard of death in the opposite phenotype (p=0.014).

Conclusions:

• The B7-H3 low/CD3 high immune phenotype identifies patients with significantly favorable survival in malignant neuroblastic tumors.
• This combined immune phenotype retains prognostic significance after adjusting for established clinical factors.
• Further validation in larger cohorts is needed to confirm the incremental prognostic value of combined B7-H3/CD3 phenotyping.