Tumour-associated macrophages might represent a favourable prognostic indicator in patients with papillary renal cell carcinoma

Aims Tumour‐associated macrophages (TAM) have been reported to be regulators of progression in various human cancers. We evaluated the prognostic relevance of TAM in a large series of patients with papillary renal cell carcinoma (PRCC). Methods and results The impact of TAM on cancer‐specific survival (CSS) in 177 patients with PRCC was assessed using the Kaplan–Meier method and log‐rank test. A multivariate Cox regression analysis was performed with respect to CSS. The presence of TAM was noted in 112 of 177 (63%) tumours and was associated statistically significantly with favourable pathological parameters, including low pathological T stage, node‐negative tumours, low tumour grade, absence of vascular invasion and papillary subtype (all P