Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated 4 protein expression is associated with a high international prognostic score in advanced-stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma

Twenty percent of all classical Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL) cases relapse and recur, especially in advanced stages with a high International Prognostic Score (IPS). Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) is a regulatory molecule that can inhibit the immune response and is related to tumor aggressiveness. This study aimed to determine the relationship between CTLA-4 expression in advanced-stage CHL and IPS, identifying it as a potential therapy target. In advanced-stage CHL, the group with a high IPS exhibited significantly higher mean CTLA-4 expression compared to the group with a low IPS (p = 0.003).The group with Hb level 15,000/µL, lymphocyte count