We demonstrate that histological assessment of TILs can help recognizing a subcategory of pure DCIS that is biologically very close to microinvasive carcinoma (miCa). Therefore, in the study presented here, we investigated the characteristics of stromal TILs in a larger series of DCIS pts. However, knowledge on TILs’ role in DCIS is still limited. On that basis, it has been proposed that TIL characteristics, like their density or immunophenotype, could help selecting IBC pts. Numerous studies have demonstrated important impact of tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) on the natural or therapeutically-modified evolution of IBC. Such a treatment would be particularly appealing to the patients with breast premalignant lesions, as the successful immunotherapies could reduce the rate of extensive surgeries and thus significantly improve patients’ quality of life. It has been hypothesized that immunotherapies could prevent progression of the cancers in situ and even induce their rejection.

Impressive therapeutic results obtained in the recent years by modifiers of the immune response to cancer have initiated movements calling for intense investigation of the immune microenvironment of preinvasive malignant lesions. This situation is caused by a lack of reliable predictors of DCIS progression and/or of molecular targets which could be therapeutically modulated to prevent occurrence of the invasive disease. However, clinical management of DCIS patients (pts) is still quite uniform, with many issues of debate, particularly with regards to over- or undertreatment. Similarly to invasive breast cancer (IBC), DCIS displays significant heterogeneity at the clinical, morphological, molecular and prognostic level. Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) now accounts for 20–25% of all female breast cancers (BCs) in countries with active mammographic screening.

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