Effects of microwave ablation on T-cell subsets and cytokines of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

To investigate the effects of microwave ablation on T-lymphocyte subsets and cytokines in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.Peripheral blood was collected from 45 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma treated by microwave ablation before treatment, one week and one month after treatment. T cells (CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ cells), CD4+ CD25+ Tregs, and CD16+ CD56+ NK cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. Levels of cytokines (IL-2, IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-12, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, and IL-10) were determined by a Luminex 200 analyzer.Compared with before treatment, CD3+ cells, CD4+ cells and IL-12 increased significantly at one month after the microwave ablation treatment, while IL-4, IL-10 decreased significantly.Microwave ablation could relieve the suppression of immune function caused by tumors, promote the deviation of Th2/Th1, and improve immune dysfunction in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.