Dissimilar patterns of tumor-infiltrating immune cells at the invasive tumor front and tumor center are associated with response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in primary breast cancer

BACKGROUND: Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) are described as an important immune modulator in the tumor microenvironment and are associated with breast cancer (BC) outcome. The spatial analysis of TILs and TIL subtype distribution at the invasive tumor front (ITF) and the tumor center (TC) might provide further insights into tumor progression. METHODS: We analyzed core biopsies from 87 pre-therapeutic BC patients for total TILs and the following subtypes: CD3+, CD4+, CD8+, CD20+ and CD68+ cells in correlation to clinicopathological parameters and disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) in the bone marrow. RESULTS: TILs and TIL subtypes showed significantly different spatial distribution among both tumor areas. TILs, especially CD3+ T cells were associated with the tumor status and tumor grading. BC patients responding to neoadjuvant chemotherapy had significantly more TILs and CD3+ T cells at the TC. The presence of DTCs after NACT was related to CD4+ infiltration at the TC. CONCLUSION: The dissimilar spatial association of TILs and TIL subtypes with clinicopathological parameters, NACT response and minimal residual disease underlines the necessity of detailed TIL analysis for a better understanding of immune modulatory processes. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s12885-019-5320-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.