Can CD3+/HLA-DR+ activated T cells predict the prognosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients?

The immune system has several mechanisms to fight against developing malignant cell clones in the host, one of them is the activated T-cell response. Both CD4+ helper and CD8+ cytotoxic T-cells bear HLA-DR molecules as important surface activation markers. Our aim was to determine, how the ratio of activated T cells change in the peripheral blood of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) patients during the periods of polychemotherapy. Using the methods of immunofluorescence staining and flow cytometry, we found the ratio of CD3+/HLA-DR+ cells significantly higher in NHL patients before treatment compared to healthy controls (10.63% versus 2.97%, P<0.001). During the period of polychemotherapy, this ratio began to increase significantly (10.63% versus 16.94%, P=0.006). After treatment, the ratio of activated T cells decreased, however, we detected significantly higher rate of CD3+/HLA-DR+ lymphocytes in patients who relapsed within 1 year than in those who stayed in remission (9.55% versus 20.62%, P<0.001). We suppose that investigation of CD3+/HLA-DR+ activated T cells might be a promising method to determine the prognostics of lymphoma patients.