Chemoradiation-Induced Alteration of Programmed Death-Ligand 1 and CD8+ Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes Identified Patients With Poor Prognosis in Rectal Cancer: AÂ Matched Comparison Analysis

This study verified the CRT-induced immunologic shift toward increases in PD-L1 expression and density of CD8+ TILs in rectal cancer patients. The alteration profiles of checkpoint-related molecules identified the patients with poor prognosis, suggesting potential candidates who can benefit from combining CRT and checkpoint inhibitors.