Immune organization in sentinel lymph nodes of melanoma patients is prognostic of distant metastases

Amitay, Y.; Milo, I.; Keidar-Haran, T.; Deis, S.; Truzman, G.; Elhanani, O.; Salame, T. M.; Azimov, M.; Stein, I.; Cohen, J.; Lotem, M.; Pikarsky, E.; Keren, L.

doi:10.1101/2024.11.24.625041

bioRxiv · 10.1101/2024.11.24.625041

Immune organization in sentinel lymph nodes of melanoma patients is prognostic of distant metastases

Amitay, Y.·Milo, I.·Keidar-Haran, T.·Deis, S.·Truzman, G.·Elhanani, O.·Salame, T. M.·Azimov, M.·Stein, I.·Cohen, J.·Lotem, M.·Pikarsky, E.·Keren, L.

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Abstract

Sentinel lymph node (sLN) biopsy is part of melanoma staging, as involved LNs indicate a higher risk of recurrence. However, how the sLN is shaped by the tumor and reciprocally affects metastatic progression is poorly understood. Here, we mapped immune organization in involved and non-involved sLNs of 69 melanoma patients using high-resolution spatial proteomics, spatial transcriptomics and deep learning, leveraging the data for prognostic evaluation. In patients with involved LNs, a robust T cell response correlated with absence of recurrence. In non-involved LNs, protection from metastases was linked to expanded sinuses colocalized with plasmablasts whereas CCR7+ cells and Tregs correlated with future development of distant metastases. We trained a model that predicts development of distant metastases with 79% and 93% AUC for non-metastatic and metastatic LNs, respectively. Our findings reveal conserved immune patterns in sLNs that prospectively identify patients at risk for metastatic disease and may aid in therapeutic decisions.

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Amitay, Y., Milo, I., Keidar-Haran, T., Deis, S., Truzman, G., Elhanani, O., Salame, T. M., Azimov, M., Stein, I., Cohen, J., Lotem, M., Pikarsky, E., Keren, L.. 2024-11-26. Immune organization in sentinel lymph nodes of melanoma patients is prognostic of distant metastases. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.11.24.625041

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