Background: The existence of Tc17 cells was recently shown in several types of infectious and autoimmune diseases, but their distribution and functions in uterine cervical cancer (UCC) have not been fully elucidated.
Methods: The frequency of Tc17 cells in peripheral blood samples obtained from UCC patients, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) patients and healthy controls was determined by flow cytometry. Besides, the prevalence of Tc17 cells and their relationships to Th17 cells and Foxp3-expressing T cells as well as microvessels in tissue samples of the patients were assessed by immunohistochemistry staining.
Results: Compared to controls, patients with UCC or CIN had a higher proportion of Tc17 cells in both peripheral blood and cervical tissues, but the level of Tc17 cells in UCC tissues was significantly higher than that in CIN tissues. Besides, the increased level of Tc17 in UCC patients was associated with the status of pelvic lymph node metastases and increased microvessel density. Finally, significant correlations of infiltration between Tc17 cells and Th17 cells or Foxp3-expressing T cells were observed in UCC and CIN tissues.
Conclusions: This study indicates that Tc17 cell infiltration in cervical cancers is associated with cancer progression accompanied by increased infiltrations of Th17 cells and regulatory T cells as well as promoted tumor vasculogenesis.