The IL-17 and Th17 cell immune response in cervical cancer : angels or demons : it depends on the context

Abstract

This thesis provides novel insights into the role of IL-17 and Th17 cells in cervical cancer. While IL-17 was shown to be predominantly produced by innate myeloid cells such as neutrophils and correlated with poor survival, Th17 cells were generally a small cell population correlated with improved survival. Since IL-6 and IL-23 were also found to be strongly correlated with poor survival, we hypothesize that these cytokines may induce IL-17 production by myeloid cells. Th17 cells may counteract this pro-inflammatory response characterized by IL-6 and IL-17. The IL-6/IL-17 response was correlated with the absence of vaso-invasion. The immune responses described are tissue and context dependent, as indicated by the predominant correlation between Tregs and improved survival in cervical adenocarcinoma. In addition to innate and T lymphocytes responses, B lymphocytes may also play an important role in cervical cancer. Few studies have investigated this cell type. We found that B cells expressing TCL1A are strongly correlated with improved survival in squamous cervical cancer. These novel data will, together with the proposed future studies, provide a better understanding of the immune response in cervical cancer. This will advance our knowledge in cancer evolution, diagnostics, prognostics and therapeutics.