Tumor-Infiltrating lymphocytes, Crohn's-like lymphoid reaction, and survival from colorectal cancer

Abstract

Background: While clinical outcomes from colorectal cancer (CRC) are influenced by stage at diagnosis and treatment, mounting evidence suggests that an enhanced lymphocytic reaction to a tumor may also be an informative prognostic indicator. Methods: The roles of intratumoral T lymphocyte infiltration (TIL), peritumoral Crohn's-like lymphoid reaction (CLR), microsatellite instability (MSI), and clinicopathological characteristics in survival from CRC were examined using 2369 incident CRCs from a population-based case-control study in northern Israel. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for CRC-specific and all-cause mortality in multivariable models adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, grade, stage, and MSI. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: Tumors with TIL/high-powered field (HPF) of 2 or greater were associated with a statistically significant increase in CRC-specific (P