a decreasing trendP > 0.05
2a ); CD4+ T cells (key immune helper and regulatory cells) exhibited a decreasing trend, albeit without reaching statistical significance ( P > 0.05), CD8+ T cells (core effector cells that directly kill tumor cells) were significantly increased ( P < 0.001, Fig. 2b ); leading to a significantly decreased CD4+/CD8+ T cell ratio ( P < 0.001, Fig. 2k ); also B cells (core cells of humoral immunity responsible for antibody production) were significantly downregulated ( P < 0.01, Fig. 2c ).