Background

In breast carcinoma, identification of tumor cells in the sentinel lymph nodes is a predictor of the tumor’s metastatic potential. Sentinel lymph node may be targeted not only by tumor cell metastasis but also by cytokines from the emergence of antitumor immune responses.

Methods

Between February 2003 and February 2004, the investigator evaluated 38 cases that underwent sentinel lymph node biopsy at the Samsung Medical Center. Eighty paraffin-embedded sections, 49 sentinel, and 31 nonsentinel lymph node, from breast carcinoma without lymphatic metastases were analyzed by real-time polymerase chain reaction to evaluate the cytokine profile (interferon-γ, interleukin-2, interleukin-10 and interleukin-12) for the T cell response.

Results

A higher expression of interleukin-10 was observed in sentinel lymph node than in nonsentinel lymph node (P = 0.03). The expressions of interferon-γ, interleukin-2, and interleukin-12 were similar between sentinel and nonsentinel lymph node.

Conclusions

Theses results indicate that T cell response was downregulated by interleukin-10 overexpression in sentinel lymph node with breast cancer.