Patients with grade III gliomas whose tumors had not progressed after 18 months (n = 9) had elevated proportions of CD3-/CD56+ NK cells (8.5 ± 5.3% vs. 6.3 ± 2.8%, data not shown), CD56+/CD94+ NK cells (6.5 ± 5.5% vs. 5.3 ± 3%) and CD3-/CD69+ NK cells (2.4 ± 2.4% vs. 1.6 ± 1.6%) compared to patients whose tumors had progressed (n = 3) within 18 months (Supplementary Figure S3A). Here, CD69 is linked to central nervous system cancer.