Practice-based evidence for the clinical benefit of PET/CT-results of the first oncologic PET/CT registry in Germany.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of PET/CT on clinical management of cancer patients based on a prospective data registry. The study was developed to inform consultations with public health insurances on PET/CT coverage.

Methods: We evaluated a prospective patient cohort having a clinically indicated PET/CT at a single German University Center from April 2013 to August 2016.

Prognostic impact of high levels of circulating plasmacytoid dendritic cells in breast cancer.

Background: Identifying immune markers in blood that are informative for breast cancer patient survival would not only be useful for prognosis but might also provide mechanistic insights into processes facilitating survival.

Methods: We phenotyped circulating plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) and regulatory T-cells in relation to T-cell responses to Her-2 in vitro in 75 untreated breast cancer patients 28-87 years of age at diagnosis.

Results: Patients with later stage tumors had lower levels of circulating pDCs (p = 0.

Prognostic impact of circulating Her-2-reactive T-cells producing pro- and/or anti-inflammatory cytokines in elderly breast cancer patients.

Background: Treating elderly breast cancer patients remains a challenge but the increasing availability of immunotherapeutic approaches instills optimism that these tumours may also be susceptible to immune control. Because aging leads to a number of alterations in the immune system ("immunosenescence") reflecting potential exhaustion which could compromise immunomodulatory antibody therapy, here we have assessed the immunocompetence of elderly breast cancer patients compared with a group of younger patients, and related this to the 5-year survival of the former.

Methods: T-cell responses to Her-2 peptide pools in vitro were assessed by analyzing pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine production by CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells in 40 elderly and 35 younger breast cancer patients.

Presence of circulating Her2-reactive CD8 + T-cells is associated with lower frequencies of myeloid-derived suppressor cells and regulatory T cells, and better survival in older breast cancer patients.

Introduction: Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers among women. Its incidence is increasing in many countries and a higher number of older women are now being diagnosed with the disease. Immune parameters are implicated in disease progression, and the frequencies of both myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) and regulatory T cells (Tregs), associated with tumour burden, have been suggested to be indicators of poor prognosis in cases of metastatic breast cancer.

Tumor cells in multiple myeloma patients inhibit myeloma-reactive T cells through carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule-6.

Although functionally competent cytotoxic, T cells are frequently observed in malignant diseases, they possess little ability to react against tumor cells. This phenomenon is particularly apparent in multiple myeloma. We here demonstrate that cytotoxic T cells reacted against myeloma antigens when presented by autologous dendritic cells, but not by myeloma cells.