Obesity and cancer: the gammadelta T cell link

Abstract

Obesity has become a worldwide scourge, affecting more than 10% of adults worldwide. While widely recognized to be associated with increased incidence of medical conditions such as diabetes mellitus and atherosclerosis, obesity also accounts for 9% of the cancer burden in some populations. This is due in part to perturbation of protective immune mechanisms involving natural killer cells, macrophages, and neutrophils. Recent studies indicate that γδ T cells play a prominent protective role against cancer, but in some circumstances are detrimental and pro tumorogenic. In this review, the current scientific literature was explored to determine whether and how obesity affects the anti- and pro-tumoral functions of γδ T cells. Considerable perturbations of γδ T cells by obesity were revealed, suggesting that the “obesity-γδ T cell axis” may profoundly impact the increased incidence of cancer in obese individuals and is worthy of further study.

Pathogenic Role of Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Obesity and Obesity-Related Inflammatory Diseases

“…γ/δ T cells may also be involved, as they are associated with a poor prognosis in obese individuals, due to their high levels of IL-17 secretion, whereas they are considered as a positive prognostic factor in cancer-bearing lean patients due to their ability to secrete Granzyme B and IFNγ [145].…”