Identical T-cell receptor transcripts in multiple melanoma metastases

Immune therapy for melanoma largely relies on preexisting T-cell responses. However, recent reports demonstrated the localized nature of such responses. Thus, we characterized the effect of immune therapy on the distribution of clonotypic T cells. To this end, we analyzed the T-cell receptor repertoire of multiple metastases of differentially treated melanoma patients revealing oligoclonal T-cell responses and the occurrence of identical T-cell clones in several metastases. However, these findings were not limited to immune therapy but were also observed after chemotherapy, suggesting its similar impact on the distribution of T cells.