Tumor histology and the immunoregulatory T lymphocyte subsets in lung cancer patients.

The immunoregulatory T lymphocyte subsets (CD4+, CD8+) in 39 patients with primary lung cancer were analyzed as for the possible correlation with tumor histology. Compared to the healthy controls (n = 36), cancer lymphocytes were generally characterized by a higher proportion of CD8+ subset (p less than 0.01) with no difference in either CD4+ subset or CD3+ cells. There was, however, a significant difference (p less than 0.05) between one extreme of epidermoid carcinoma with the highest CD8+ and the lowest ratio (CD4+/8+) and the other end of adenocarcinoma with the lowest CD8+ and the highest ratio. Large cell and small cell carcinomas were of the intermediate values. A spectrum of the subset marker profiles was thus found in associated with tumor histology. A diversity in the host immune status was suggested in primary lung cancer, although clinical implication remains to be clarified.