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| Prognostic significance of regulatory T lymphocytes in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma |
| Ai-bin Zhang, Yi-gang Qian, Shu-sen Zheng |
| Division of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Department of Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310003, China; Key Laboratory of Combined Multi-organ Transplantation, Ministry of Public Health, Hangzhou 310003, China; Key Laboratory of Organ Transplantation, Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou 310003, China; Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis Treatment of Infectious Diseases, Hangzhou 310003, China |
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Abstract We investigated the prognostic role of regulatory T cells (Tregs) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Relevant evidence regarding prognostic significance of Tregs was systematically searched in MEDLINE and Embase databases. A meta-analysis was performed to compare survival in patients with high or low Tregs level (either in peripheral blood or tumor). Eighteen studies were identified that fulfilled for the eligibility criteria and were included for data synthesis. Our pooled hazard ratios (HRs) demonstrated that increased Tregs intratumoral accumulation was significantly associated with worse overall survival (HR=2.04, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.72–2.42) and disease-free survival (HR=1.82, 95% CI: 1.58–2.09). Three studies evaluated the role of Tregs in peripheral blood, and all of them showed that increased peripheral Tregs correlated with shortened disease-free and overall survival. Collectively, our results showed that the increased Tregs count is tightly associated with the shortened survivals. Its measurement in either primary tumor or even circulation might be a candidate marker of prognostic significance in HCC patients.
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Received: 25 June 2016
Published: 05 December 2016
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