Stimulated γδ T Cells Increase the In Vivo Efficacy of Trastuzumab in HER-2+ Breast Cancer

One fourth of women with HER-2(+) metastatic breast carcinoma are treated with a combination regimen with trastuzumab, but the frequent resistance to this Ab requires definition of new means to improve its bioactivity. The mechanisms of action of trastuzumab involve several pathways including Ab-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. Because human gamma delta T lymphocytes mediate Ab-dependent cellular cytotoxicity and can be activated further by phosphoantigens, these cells are prone to improve the efficacy of Abs, as recently demonstrated for CD20(+) B cell lymphomas. Whether this concept applies as well with carcinomas remained to be demonstrated in vivo, however. In this study, we asked whether a combination of trastuzumab and phosphoantigen-stimulated gamma delta lymphocytes increases the efficacy of trastuzumab against HER-2(+) breast carcinoma cell lines in vivo. We report that repeated infusions of this combination had a better efficacy than that of trastuzumab alone against HER-2(+) mammary carcinoma xenografts in mice. In these models, reduction of tumor growth was observed together with trastuzumab opsonization of HER-2(+) cells and tumor infiltration by gamma delta lymphocytes. In addition in humans, the mammary carcinomas of 27 of 30 patients showed significant gamma delta T cell infiltrates. Altogether, these findings indicate that combination of trastuzumab and stimulated gamma delta cells represents a new strategy to improve the efficacy of Herceptin (trastuzumab) in HER-2(+) breast cancer. The Journal of Immunology, 2011, 187: 1031-1038.