The natural history of cancer involves interactions between the tumor and the host immune system. In humans, clinical and experimental data support the existence of a natural immune response against cancer. We provided evidence that the type, the density and the location of immune cells within the tumor strongly influence the prognosis, independently of the TNM classification. We established a methodology named "immunoscore" to assess in clinical practice the immune infiltrate. An international consortium of expert laboratories is currently testing the immunoscore in routine clinical settings for cancer classification. The availability of the mmunoscore could significantly improve the prognostic assessment of patients and better guide the therapeutic decision. This could result in the implementation of the immunoscore as a new component for the classification of cancer, designated TNM-I (TNM-immune).
© 2014 médecine/sciences – Inserm.