The Role of Circulating CD16+CD56+ Natural Killer Cells in the Screening, Diagnosis, and Staging of Colorectal Cancer before Initial Treatment

Background and Objective. A reliable noninvasive prediction tool for the screening, diagnosis, and/or staging of colorectal cancer (CRC) before surgery is critical for the choice of treatment and prognosis. Methods. Patients admitted for initial treatment of CRC between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2018, were retrieved and reviewed. Records of CD16+CD56+ natural killer (NK) cells were analyzed according to the stages of CRC. Results. The number of qualified participants in the healthy, stage I, stage II, stage III, and stage IV CRC patients were 60, 66, 60, 70, and 68, respectively. There was a significant difference in circulating CD16+CD56+ NK cells between the healthy group and the CRC group (p