Prognostic significance of CD163+ tumor-associated macrophages in colorectal cancer

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to explore the prognostic significance of tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) infiltration in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. METHODS: Tissue microarray and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the infiltration of CD163+ TAMs in 209 CRC samples, and the Kaplan–Meier method was used for survival analysis. Cox proportional hazards analysis was used for univariate analysis and multivariate analysis of clinically relevant confounders. RESULTS: The samples were divided into low-level (n = 105) and high-level infiltration groups (n = 104) by the median number of CD163+ TAMs detected. The overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) of CRC patients in the low-level CD163+ TAM infiltration group were longer than those in the high-level CD163+ TAM infiltration group (P < 0.001). Infiltration of CD163+ TAMs in CRC tissues was a negative prognostic factor for CRC patients. Risks of death and disease recurrence for CRC patients in the low-level CD163+ TAM infiltration group were lower than those in the high-level CD163+ TAM infiltration group (HR(OS) = 0.183, 95% CI 0.052–0.647, P = 0.008; HR(DFS) = 0.191, 95% CI 0.078–0.470, P = 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: The infiltration of CD163+ TAMs in CRC tissue is an independent adverse factor for the prognosis of CRC patients. High-level infiltration of CD163+ TAMs is associated with shorter OS and DFS. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12957-021-02299-y.