EXTRACORPOREAL PHOTOCHEMOTHERAPY INDUCES A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN CD36-FUNGOIDES( CIRCULATING MONOCYTES IN PATIENTS WITH MYCOSIS)

Background: In patients with Sezary syndrome undergoing extracorporeal photochemotherapy it is currently thought that photodamage of a congr uent number of pathogenic circulating T cells is a necessary condition for a specific anticlonal response to be induced against these cells by the immune system. However other mechanisms of action, such as the induction of release by photoirradiated monocytes of some cytokines, a re thought to cooperate in the induction of a therapeutic response. Ob jective: We investigated the effects of extracorporeal photochemothera py on peripheral blood mononuclear cells in seven stage Ib cutaneous T cell lymphoma patients. Method: Samples of peripheral blood were take n before starting extracorporeal photochemotherapy (baseline), and bef ore the 3rd and 6th cycle of treatment, and then incubated with specif ic monoclonal antibodies. Results: The results showed a significant in crease of CD8+ and CD36+ and a significant decrease of CD25+ in all th e treated patients. Conclusion: Our results show that extracorporeal p hotochemotherapy is able to induce an increase of CD36+ cell in periph eral blood of patients with mycosis fungoides in its early stages. Thi s subset of monocytes could be involved in the complex mechanism of ac tion of extracorporeal photochemotherapy.