Tumor Infiltrating Lymphocyte and Axillary Lymph Node Positivity: A Systematic Review

Tumor infiltrating lymphocytes were associated with a good prognosis in some types of cancers, including breast cancer, with an important role in host immune response to the tumor. Axillary lymph node involvement is one of the most important prognostic factors of breast cancer. Authors carried out a systematic review to understand the predictive value of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes and axillary lymph node involvement. This review was based in literature search on PubMed, Cochrane Library and studies presented at European Society of Medical Oncology and at American Society of Clinical Oncology. These studies, published over the last 30 years, provided data from 776 patients. A correlation between tumor infiltrating lymphocytes and axillary lymph node involvement in breast cancer was found, although, their predictive value for axillary lymph node metastization is not clear.