Microsatellite unstable colorectal cancers are associated with increased CD1a- and CD83-positive dendritic cell infiltration

Microsatellite instability (MSI) is characterized by a highly immunogenic tumor phenotype and abundant lymphocytic infiltrates. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between four immunohistochemically determined classes of dendritic cells (DC) with microsatellite instability status of 258 colorectal cancer (CRC) patients and to explore the possible role of those cells as prognostic factors for survival. We observed a distinct infiltration pattern of DCs both in tumor stroma (TS) and invasive front (IF), with DCs significantly prevailing in the IF (p