A positive correlation between neutrophils in regional lymph nodes and progression of gastric cancer.

UNLABELLED BACKGROND/AIM: Recent evidence indicates that inflammation is a hallmark of cancer. Tumor-associated neutrophils (TANs) contribute to tumor invasion. However, whether TANs and lymph node metastasis are related is unknown. Intranodal lymphatic vessel density (LVD) is significantly correlated with tumor progression, lymph node metastasis in gastric cancer. Herein, we investigated the effects of TANs in regional lymph nodes. MATERIALS AND METHODS We investigated the association of the density of TANs in regional lymph nodes with clinicopathological features by immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, we examined the prognostic value of TANs in lymph nodes. RESULTS The number of TANs in regional lymph nodes was positively correlated with intranodal LVD and micrometastases. Patients with higher cluster of differentiation 15(+) TAN counts had significantly poorer prognosis than those with lower counts. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that TANs in regional lymph nodes promote the invasion of lymph nodes by cancer cells via augmentation of lymphangiogenesis and thereby contribute to tumor progression.