Peripheral Lymphocyte Subsets Predict Efficacy and Overall Survival in Gastric Cancer Patients Receiving Preoperative Chemotherapy: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND

Pathologic complete response (pCR), which reflects the local immune status and preoperative chemotherapy efficacy, has garnered significant attention in gastric cancer research. However, the predictive value of peripheral lymphocyte subsets for pCR in gastric cancer patients receiving preoperative chemotherapy remains unclear.

AIMS: This study aims to assess the correlation between preoperative peripheral lymphocyte subsets and pCR in gastric cancer patients.

METHODS AND

RESULTS

In this retrospective study, gastric cancer patients who underwent curative gastrectomy following preoperative chemotherapy were included. Cytokines and peripheral lymphocytes were measured using flow cytometry. Clinicopathological characteristics, peripheral lymphocyte data and cytokine data were collected for the analysis. Overall survival (OS) was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves. Of 173 patients, 15 (8.7%) achieved pCR. A lower proportion of CD19+ B cells (7.5% vs. 10.4%, p = 0.008) was associated with pCR, and a high absolute count of NK cells was associated with better OS (p = 0.044).

CONCLUSIONS

Our study indicated that a lower proportion of CD19+ B cells may serve as a predictive biomarker for pCR, while an increased peripheral NK cell count could function as an auxiliary factor for risk stratification when combined with clinical parameters to assess long-term outcomes in gastric cancer patients receiving preoperative chemotherapy.