Th1 and Th2 Cytokine Gene Expression in the Peripheral Blood of Breast Cancer Patients Compared to Controls

Background: cytokines produced by different subsets of t cells are the keymediators to adjust the quality of immune responses. despite evidence of induction ofan immune reaction against tumors such as breast cancer, not all responses areprotective. in this study we attempt to evaluate the expression profile of severalcytokines from the t helper 1 and 2 subsets in blood cells from patients with breastcancer. methods:we recruited 100 recently diagnosed patients with confirmed pathologicalreports. peripheral blood samples were taken and the expression of the transcripts foril-2, il-12a, il-12b, ifn-?, il-4, il-10, il-13 and il-13r?2 were measured byquantitative real time pcr. we correlated the results to clinical findings and comparedthe results to those from 64 healthy individuals. results: among the studied cytokines, we observed a significant increase in theexpression of t helper 1 pro-inflammatory cytokines il-12b, il-2 and ifn-? comparedto healthy controls. elevated expression of those cytokines was associated with highstage and/or high grade tumors but there was no association with other clinicaldeterminants. simultaneously, blood cells showed high expression of il-10, but notthe other studied t helper 2 cytokines.conclusion: the mixed and complex cytokine profile of t helper 1 and 2 immunityin blood cells may show an immunological imbalance which makes the overall systemfavor cancer. this may be a potential target for immunotherapy approaches, howevermore comprehensive results are needed.