바로가기  >

Abstract
Although radiotherapy (RT) decreases the incidence of locoregional recurrence in breast cancer, patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) have increased risk of local recurrence following breast-conserving therapy. The relationship between RT and local recurrence is unknown. Here, we tested the hypothesis that recurrence in some instances is due to the attraction of circulating tumor cells to irradiated tissues. To evaluate the effect of absolute lymphocyte count on local recurrence after RT in patients with TNBC, we analyzed radiation effects on tumor and immune cell recruitment to tissues in an orthotopic breast cancer model. Recurrent patients exhibited a prolonged low absolute lymphocyte count when compared with nonrecurrent patients following RT. Recruitment of tumor cells to irradiated normal tissues was enhanced in the absence of CD8+ T cells. Macrophages (CD11b+F480+) preceded tumor cell infiltration and were recruited to tissues following RT. Tumor cell recruitment was mitigated by inhibiting macrophage infiltration using maraviroc, an FDA-approved CCR5 receptor antagonist. Our work poses the intriguing possibility that excessive macrophage infiltration in the absence of lymphocytes promotes local recurrence after RT. This combination thus defines a high-risk group of patients with TNBC.Significance: This study establishes the importance of macrophages in driving tumor cell recruitment to sites of local radiation therapy and suggests that this mechanism contributes to local recurrence in women with TNBC that are also immunosuppressed.

Author information

Rafat M1, Aguilera TA2, Vilalta M1, Bronsart LL1, Soto LA1, von Eyben R1, Golla MA1, Ahrari Y1, Melemenidis S1, Afghahi A3, Jenkins MJ1, Kurian AW3, Horst KC1, Giaccia AJ1, Graves EE4.
1
Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University, Stanford, California.
2
Department of Radiation Oncology, Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, U.T. Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.
3
Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California.
4
Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University, Stanford, California. egraves@stanford.edu.