Programmed cell death-ligand 1 expression and immunoscore in stage II and III non-small cell lung cancer patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy

Programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) receptor–ligand interaction is a major pathway that is often hijacked by tumors to suppress immune control. Immunoscore (IS), a combinational index of CD3 and CD8 tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) density in the tumor’s center and invasive margin, is a new prognostic tool suggested to be superior to conventional tumor-staging methods in various tumors. This retrospective study aimed to investigate the prevalence and prognostic roles of PD-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression and IS in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy. PD-L1 expression and TIL density were evaluated by immunohistochemical analysis in 36 patients with stage II and III NSCLC. Tumors with staining in over 1% of their cells were scored as positive for PD-L1 expression, and we determined the median number of CD3- and CD8-positive TILs as the cutoff point for TIL density. To determine IS, each patient was given a binary score (0 for low and 1 for high) for CD3 and CD8 density in both the tumor center and invasive margin region. PD-L1 expression in tumor cells was observed in 61.1% (22/36) of patients. PD-L1 expression was significantly associated with high IS, and highest IS tended to have a favorable disease-free survival.