Notably, we observed that Tim-3+ CD4 T cells isolated from peripheral blood did not suppress the proliferation and IFN-γ production of T cells (data not shown), which is in line with our data indicating that circulating Tim-3+ CD4 T cells exhibit different functional and phenotypic features to tumor-derived Tim-3+ cells (Figure 2, 3 and 4A). This evidence concerns the gene IFNG and neoplasm.