The Correlation Between iNKT Cells and Malignant Tumors: A Meta-Analysis.
- 1Department of Medical Oncology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China.
- 2Laboratory for Clinical Medicine, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China.
Abstract
Cancer is one of the major global health problems, with increasing numbers of new cases and deaths each year. This highlights the urgency of effective treatment. The iNKT cells act as a special subset of T cells with potent anti-tumor effects. Therefore, the correlation between iNKT cells and cancer will be evaluated in terms of frequency, prognosis, and efficacy in this study. A total of 62 studies involving 1076 healthy controls and 2453 cancer patients were included in this meta-analysis. The meta-analysis showed that the number of circulating iNKT cells was significantly higher in healthy controls than in cancer patients, as well as the frequency of iNKT cells in circulating T cells and mononuclear cells. At the same time, the frequency of iNKT cells in T cells was significantly higher in non-tumor tissues than in tumor tissues. In terms of prognosis, the higher frequency of iNKT cells in peripheral blood or tumor tissues of cancer patients was associated with improved overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS). Regarding the efficacy of iNKT cell-related therapies, the objective response rate was 3%, and the disease control rate was 49%. In conclusion, iNKT cells were significantly reduced in cancer patients, and the higher frequency of iNKT cells was associated with a favorable prognosis in these patients.
Related
- 177 Native and engineered allogenic invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells eliminate senescent tumor cells and fibroblasts in oncogenic in vitro models
- Scalable expansion of human iNKT cells: single-cell profiling and in vivo control of GvHD with preserved GvL activity
- Amino Acid Remodeling Precedes Malignant Transformation in Oral Epithelial Cells
- Genetic and genomic approaches to explore roles for the conserved 3′-5′ exoribonuclease EXOSC10 in normal and malignant cells
- 556 A phase I first-in-human trial of IL-12 genetically engineered myeloid cells in participants with relapsed, refractory solid tumors
BibTeX
@article{liang2026correlation,
title = {{The Correlation Between iNKT Cells and Malignant Tumors: A Meta-Analysis.}},
author = {Chendi Liang and Xiaoxia Wang and Jun Lu},
journal = {Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.)},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3390/curroncol33100579},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42930146},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The Correlation Between iNKT Cells and Malignant Tumors: A Meta-Analysis.
AU - Chendi Liang
AU - Xiaoxia Wang
AU - Jun Lu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/28
JO - Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.)
DO - 10.3390/curroncol33100579
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42930146
AB - Cancer is one of the major global health problems, with increasing numbers of new cases and deaths each year. This highlights the urgency of effective treatment. The iNKT cells act as a special subset of T cells with potent anti-tumor effects. Therefore, the correlation between iNKT cells and cancer will be evaluated in terms of frequency, prognosis, and efficacy in this study. A total of 62 studies involving 1076 healthy controls and 2453 cancer patients were included in this meta-analysis. The meta-analysis showed that the number of circulating iNKT cells was significantly higher in healthy controls than in cancer patients, as well as the frequency of iNKT cells in circulating T cells and mononuclear cells. At the same time, the frequency of iNKT cells in T cells was significantly higher in non-tumor tissues than in tumor tissues. In terms of prognosis, the higher frequency of iNKT cells in peripheral blood or tumor tissues of cancer patients was associated with improved overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS). Regarding the efficacy of iNKT cell-related therapies, the objective response rate was 3%, and the disease control rate was 49%. In conclusion, iNKT cells were significantly reduced in cancer patients, and the higher frequency of iNKT cells was associated with a favorable prognosis in these patients.
SN - 1198-0052
SN - 1718-7729
ER -