Abstract 5417: Expansion of effector regulatory T-cells represents a novel and independent prognostic factor marking escape from immune surveillance in Myleodysplastic Syndrome

Abstract

Abstract Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) refer to a group of pathophysiologically diverse hematopoietic neoplasms associated with cytopenias, myeloid dysplasia, and variable acute myeloid leukemia risk. Response to immunosuppressive therapies (IST) in a subset of younger patients classified as lower-risk by the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) suggests that inflammation and immune reactivity in the bone marrow likely plays a role in early MDS pathogenesis. Conversely, higher-risk patients with more established disease do not respond to IST. Previous reports of increased regulatory T-cells (Tregs) in these patients suggest that immune escape may be required for progression to higher-risk disease. The distinct changes in the role of the immune system between lower and higher-risk disease suggests that MDS may progress according to established principles of cancer immuno-editing involving elimination, equilibrium and escape phases. Because Treg suppressive activity is dependant upon auto-antigen presentation, we hypothesized that analyzing the activation state of Tregs may better reflect the onset of tumor-induced immune suppression in MDS and have better prognostic utility than measuring total Treg numbers alone. Here, we use a panel of surface markers on Tregs that are normally employed to distinguish effector and memory populations among conventional T-cells and analyzed the resulting subpopulations for associations with clinical features including overall survival (OS) among patients predominantly classified as lower-risk. Abnormal numbers of Treg subtypes were seen in 18 (34.6%) of 52 patients compared to age-matched controls. The most prominent and unique change in MDS patients was an expansion of effector Tregs (TregEff) which was significantly associated with anemia (p=0.046) and reduced hemoglobin (p=0.038). This group of patients had increased blast percentage (p=0.006) and displayed worse OS by Cox-regression (HR 4.3, 95% CI 1.6-11.6, p=0.004) independent of IPSS (p=0.002) and the MD Anderson Scoring System (MDAS) (p=0.047). Increased TregEff numbers were not dependant on total Treg numbers. Rather, they came at the expense of central memory Tregs suggesting that Treg “class switching” may reflect active presentation of auto-antigens. When isolated, TregEff cells displayed increased suppressive capacity compared to other Treg subpopulations and heightened TregEff numbers were limited to patients with elevated blasts (tumor burden), suggesting a mechanistic link between immune-evasion and MDS progression. The MDAS significantly refined OS estimates (p<0.001) compared to IPSS. Using the MDAS, OS in higher-risk patients could be further stratified using TregEff numbers (p=0.018), suggesting that enumeration of TregEff cells may improve prognostication and impact therapeutic selection in MDS. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5417. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-5417