The immune microenvironment landscape shows treatment-specific differences in rectal cancer patients

Neoadjuvant therapy is the cornerstone of modern rectal cancer treatment. Insights into the biology of tumor responses are essential for the successful implementation of organ-preserving strategies, as different treatments may lead to specific tumor responses. In this study, we aim to explore treatment-specific responses of the tumor microenvironment. Patients with locally advanced adenocarcinoma of the rectum who had received neo-adjuvant chemotherapy (CT), neo-adjuvant radiochemotherapy (RCT), neo-adjuvant radiotherapy with a long-interval (LRT) or short-interval (SRT) or no neoadjuvant therapy (NT) as control were included. Multiplex-immunofluorescence was performed to determine the presence of cytotoxic T-cells (T-cyt; CD3+CD8+), regulatory T-cells (T-reg; CD3+FOXP3+), T-helper cells (T-helper; CD3+CD8-FOXP3-), B cells (CD20+), dendritic cells (CD11c+) and tumor cells (panCK+). A total of 80 rectal cancer patients were included. Treatment groups were matched for gender, tumor location, response to therapy, and TNM stage. The pattern of response (shrinkage vs. fragmentation) was, however, different between treatment groups. Our analyses reveal that RCT-treated patients exhibited lower stromal T-helper, T-reg, and T-cyt cells compared to other treatment regimens. In conclusion, we demonstrated treatment-specific differences in the immune microenvironment landscape of rectal cancer patients. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of this landscape after a specific therapy will benefit future treatment decisions.