No abstract

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most prevalent type of cancer, and liver metastasis is the most common site of metastatic development. In the tumor microenvironment (TME), various innate immune cells are known to influence cancer progression and metastasis occurrence. CD274 (PD-L1) and CD206 (MRC1) are proteins that have been associated with poor prognosis and disease progression. We conducted a study on tumoral and non-tumoral biopsies from 47 patients with CRC liver metastasis, using flow cytometry to phenotypically characterize innate immune cells. Our findings showed an increase in the expression of CD274 on classical, intermediate, and non-classical monocytes when comparing tumor with non-tumor samples. Furthermore, tumor samples with a desmoplastic growth pattern exhibited a significantly decreased percentage of CD274- and CD206-positive cells in all monocyte populations compared to non-desmoplastic samples. We found a correlation between a lower expression of CD206 or CD274 on classical, intermediate, and non-classical monocytes and increased disease-free survival, which points to a better prognosis for these patients. In conclusion, our study has identified potential new targets and biomarkers that could be incorporated into a personalized medicine approach to enhance the outcome for colorectal cancer patients.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide, with liver metastasis being its main cause of death. This study harvested fresh biological material from non-tumor and tumor tissue from 47 patients with CRC liver metastasis after surgery, followed by mechanical cellular extraction and stain-lyse-wash direct immunofluorescence technique. Here, 60 different T-cell populations were characterized by flow cytometry. Tumor samples were also subdivided according to their growth pattern into desmoplastic and non-desmoplastic. When we compared tumor versus non-tumor samples, we observed a significantly lower percentage of T-lymphocyte infiltration in the tumor in which the CD4+ T-cell density increased compared to the CD8+ T cells. T regulatory cells also increased within the tumor, even with an activated phenotype (HLA-DR+). A higher percentage of IL-17-producing cells was present in tumor samples and correlated with the metastasis size. In contrast, we also observed a significant increase in CD8+ follicular-like T cells (CD185+), suggesting a cytotoxic response to cancer cells. Additionally, most infiltrated T cells exhibit an intermediate activation phenotype (CD25+). In conclusion, our results revealed potential new targets and prognostic biomarkers that could take part in an algorithm for personalized medicine approaches improving CRC patients’ outcomes.

Necrotising fasciitis (NF) is a severe infection of the subcutaneous tissue and fascia that can rapidly lead to sepsis and shock with high mortality rates. Its initial signs are often non-specific making it difficult for an early diagnosis to be reached. Nevertheless it is of the utmost importance to begin proper treatment including wide surgical debridement as soon as possible in order to avoid death. We present the case of a patient with NF of the thoracic wall which is a rare location for this disease but often associated with worse prognosis. Even though he progressed to septic shock within less than 24 hours of its presentation, due to early surgical management, aggressive resuscitation and intensive care support, he reached a favourable outcome. After three surgical revisions and 2 weeks in an intensive care unit, the patient was discharged from hospital 35 days after admission.