Ingrid Glimelius

Mast cell infiltration correlates with poor prognosis in Hodgkin's lymphoma

Summary. Hodgkins lymphoma (HL) is characterized by a few Hodgkin, Reed–Sternberg cells (HRS) surrounded by benign cells. We recently reported that mast cells were the predominant CD30L‐positive cells in HL tumours, and that they activate HRS in vitro through CD30L–CD30 interaction. Here, we investigated the clinical importance of mast cell infiltration in the tumours of 123 patients. Tumour specimens were stained with a mast‐cell‐specific antibody that detects tryptase. Mast cells were detected in virtually every case and increasing numbers of mast cells correlated to nodular sclerosis histology (P = 0·008). Patients with higher mast cell infiltration had a worse relapse‐free survival (P = 0·01).

Angiogenesis and mast cells in Hodgkin lymphoma.

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a malignant disorder characterised by few tumour cells surrounded by a massive infiltrate of inflammatory cells, fibrosis, and microvessels. Therefore, it is a good model in which to study the interplay between tumour cells and the microenvironment. In a population-based series, stage IIB had poor prognosis, equivalent to the most advanced stage (stage IV). The most prominent negative prognostic factor was tumour bulk in the mediastinum (often large fibrotic tumours). The tumour cells expressed interleukin-9 (IL-9) in their cytoplasm in half of the cases. These cases had an over representation of nodular sclerosis histology (characterised by fibrotic bands) and infiltration of eosinophils and mast cells in the tumours. Despite this, IL-9 expression was not a negative prognostic factor. A role of inflammatory cells is to contribute to angiogenesis. Yet, a correlation between high microvessel count and high mast cell number in HL tumours was not identified, in contrast to other lymphomas. However, a correlation to poor prognosis was seen for cases with high microvessel count. Eosinophils contain eosinophil cationic protein (ECP). ECP was cytotoxic to cells from two HL cell lines of B-cell origin and one HL line of T-cell origin. At high concentrations, the cytotoxic effect was not as pronounced for the line of T-cell origin. If the in vitro cell lines are representative of HL in vivo, eosinophils may have different roles in different HL tumours. In addition to the effect from tumour cells, host-related factors contribute to the inflammatory infiltrate in HL. A history of asthma and hives, and carrying the ECP434GG genotype were associated with elevated numbers of eosinophils, whereas, history of tobacco smoking was associated with lower numbers. HL is a complex tumour consisting of recruited and subverted normal cells, fibrosis and angiogenesis: these constitute the microenvironment, which likely supports tumour cell growth, and differs between patients.

Exposure to UV radiation and risk of Hodgkin lymphoma: a pooled analysis

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure has been inversely associated with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) risk, but only inconsistently, only in a few studies, and without attention to HL heterogeneity. We conducted a pooled analysis of HL risk focusing on type and timing of UVR exposure and on disease subtypes by age, histology, and tumor-cell Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) status. Four case-control studies contributed 1320 HL cases and 6381 controls. We estimated lifetime, adulthood, and childhood UVR exposure and history of sunburn and sunlamp use. We used 2-stage estimation with mixed-effects models and weighted pooled effect estimates by inverse marginal variances. We observed statistically significant inverse associations with HL risk for UVR exposures during childhood and adulthood, sunburn history, and sunlamp use, but we found no significant dose-response relationships. Risks were significant only for EBV-positive HL (pooled odds ratio, 0.56; 95% confidence interval, 0.35 to 0.91 for the highest overall UVR exposure category), with a significant linear trend for overall exposure (P = .03). Pooled relative risk estimates were not heterogeneous across studies. Increased UVR exposure may protect against HL, particularly EBV-positive HL. Plausible mechanisms involving UVR induction of regulatory T cells or the cellular DNA damage response suggest opportunities for new prevention targets.

Predictors of histology, tissue eosinophilia and mast cell infiltration in Hodgkin's lymphoma--a population-based study.

Objective:  Classical Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) lesions comprise few tumour cells, surrounded by numerous inflammatory cells. Like in other malignancies, the microenvironment is presumed to be clinically important in HL; however, microenvironment predictors remain poorly characterised. The aim of this study was to investigate how selected patient characteristics and genetic factors affect HL phenotype, in particular tissue eosinophilia, mast cell counts and HL histological subtype.

Autoimmune and Atopic Disorders and Risk of Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma

Results from previous investigations have shown associations between the risk of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and a history of autoimmune and atopic diseases, but it remains unknown whether these associations apply to all types of HL or only to specific subtypes. We investigated immune diseases and the risk of classical HL in a population-based case-control study that included 585 patients and 3,187 controls recruited from October 1999 through August 2002. We collected information on immune diseases through telephone interviews and performed serological analyses of specific immunoglobulin E reactivity. Tumor Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) status was determined for 498 patients. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated using logistic regression analysis. Rheumatoid arthritis was associated with a higher risk of HL (odds ratio (OR) = 2.63; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.47, 4.70), especially EBV-positive HL (OR = 3.18; 95% CI: 1.23, 8.17), and with mixed-cellularity HL (OR = 4.25; 95% CI: 1.66, 10.90). HL risk was higher when we used proxies of severe rheumatoid arthritis, such as ever having received daily rheumatoid arthritis medication (OR = 3.98; 95% CI: 2.08, 7.62), rheumatoid arthritis duration of 6-20 years (OR = 3.80; 95% CI: 1.72, 8.41), or ever having been hospitalized for rheumatoid arthritis (OR = 7.36; 95% CI: 2.95, 18.38). Atopic diseases were not associated with the risk of HL. EBV replication induced by chronic inflammation in patients with autoimmune diseases might explain the higher risk of EBV-positive HL.

A Novel Risk Locus at 6p21.3 for Epstein–Barr Virus-Positive Hodgkin Lymphoma

Background: A proportion of the genetic variants involved in susceptibility to Hodgkin lymphoma differ by the tumors Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) status, particularly within the MHC region. Methods: We have conducted an SNP imputation study of the MHC region, considering tumor EBV status in 1,200 classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) cases and 5,726 control subjects of European origin. Notable findings were genotyped in an independent study population of 468 cHL cases and 551 controls. Results: We identified and subsequently replicated a novel association between a common genetic variant rs6457715 and cHL. Although strongly associated with EBV-positive cHL [OR, 2.33; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.83–2.97; P = 7 × 10–12], there was little evidence for association between rs6457715 and the EBV-negative subgroup of cHL (OR, 1.06; 95% CI, 0.92–1.21), indicating that this association was specific to the EBV-positive subgroup (Phet < P = 10−8). Furthermore, the association was limited to EBV-positive cHL subgroups within mixed cell (MCHL) and nodular sclerosis subtypes (NSHL), suggesting that the association is independent of histologic subtype of cHL. Conclusions: rs6457715, located near the HLA-DPB1 gene, is associated with EBV-positive cHL and suggests this region as a novel susceptibility locus for cHL. Impact: This expands the number of genetic variants that are associated with cHL and provides additional evidence for a critical and specific role of EBV in the etiology of this disease. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 24(12); 1838–43. ©2015 AACR.

High proportions of PD-1 + and PD-L1 + leukocytes in classical Hodgkin lymphoma microenvironment are associated with inferior outcome

Immune checkpoint inhibition targeting the programmed death receptor (PD)-1 pathway is a novel treatment approach in relapsed and refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL). Identifying patients with a high risk of treatment failure could support the use of PD-1 inhibitors as front-line treatment. Our aim was to investigate the prognostic impact of PD-1, programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), and PD-L2 in the tumor microenvironment in diagnostic biopsies of patients with cHL. Patients from Denmark and Sweden, diagnosed between 1990 and 2007 and ages 15 to 86 years, were included. Tissue microarray samples were available from 387 patients. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect PD-1, PD-L1, and PD-L2, and the proportions of positive cells were calculated. Event-free survival (EFS; time to treatment failure) and overall survival (OS) were analyzed using Cox proportional hazards regression. High proportions of both PD-1+ (hazard ratio [HR], 1.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.10-2.86) and PD-L1+ (HR = 1.89; 95% CI, 1.08-3.30) leukocytes in the microenvironment were associated with inferior EFS in a multivariate analysis (adjusted for white blood cell count >15 × 109/L, hemoglobin <105 g/L, albumin <40 g/L, B symptoms, extranodal involvement, stage, bulky tumor, nodular sclerosis subtype, Epstein-Barr virus status, lymphocyte count <0.6 × 109/L, sex, and country). A high proportion of PD-L1+ leukocytes was also associated with inferior OS in a multivariate analysis (HR, 3.46; 95% CI, 1.15-10.37). This is the first study to show a correlation after multivariate analysis between inferior outcome in cHL and a high proportion of both PD-1+ and PD-L1+ leukocytes in the tumor microenvironment.

The role of pregnancy, perinatal factors and hormones in maternal cancer risk: a review of the evidence

An understanding of the origin of cancer is critical for cancer prevention and treatment. Complex biological mechanisms promote carcinogenesis, and there is increasing evidence that pregnancy‐related exposures influence foetal growth cell division and organ functioning and may have a long‐lasting impact on health and disease susceptibility in the mothers and offspring. Nulliparity is an established risk factor for breast, ovarian, endometrial and possibly pancreatic cancer, whilst the risk of kidney cancer is elevated in parous compared with nulliparous women. For breast, endometrial and ovarian cancer, each pregnancy provides an additional risk reduction. The associations of parity with thyroid and colorectal cancers are uncertain. The timing of reproductive events is also recognized to be important. Older age at first birth is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, and older age at last birth is associated with a reduced risk of endometrial cancer. The risks of breast and endometrial cancers increase with younger age at menarche and older age at menopause. The mechanisms, and hormone profiles, that underlie alterations in maternal cancer risk are not fully understood and may differ by malignancy. Linking health registries and pooling of data in the Nordic countries have provided opportunities to conduct epidemiologic research of pregnancy exposures and subsequent cancer. We review the maternal risk of several malignancies, including those with a well‐known hormonal aetiology and those with less established relationships. The tendency for women to have fewer pregnancies and at later ages, together with the age‐dependent increase in the incidence of most malignancies, is expected to affect the incidence of pregnancy‐associated cancer.

Risk of disability pension in patients following rectal cancer treatment and surgery

Aspects of survivorship, such as long‐term ability to work, are increasingly relevant owing to the improved survival of patients with rectal cancer. The aim of this study was to assess risk and determinants of disability pension (DP) in this patient group.

An anergic immune signature in the tumor microenvironment of classical Hodgkin lymphoma is associated with inferior outcome

The classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) tumor microenvironment shows an ongoing inflammatory response consisting of varying degrees of infiltrating eosinophils, mast cells, macrophages, regulatory T lymphocytes (Tregs), and activated lymphocytes surrounding the malignant cells. Herein, different immune signatures are characterized and correlated with treatment outcome.