Expression of connective tissue growth factor in tumor tissues is an independent predictor of poor prognosis in patients with gastric cancer

• Published in: World journal of gastroenterology : WJG Vol. 14; no. 13; pp. 2110 - 2114
• Main Authors: Liu, Lu-Ying, Han, Yan-Chun, Wu, Shu-Hua, Lv, Zeng-Hua
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Department of Pathology, Binzhou Medical Collage, Binzhou 256603, Shandong Province, China%Department of Pathology, Affiliated Hospital of Binzhou Medical Collage, Binzhou 256603, Shandong Province, China 07.04.2008; The WJG Press and Baishideng
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Connective Tissue Growth Factor; Female; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; Humans; Immediate-Early Proteins - biosynthesis; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins - biosynthesis; Lymphatic Metastasis; Male; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Invasiveness; Prognosis; Rapid Communication; Stomach Neoplasms - metabolism; Stomach Neoplasms - mortality; Time Factors; Treatment Outcome; 淋巴结转移; 结缔组织生长因子; Lymph node metastasis; Connective tissue growth factor; Prognosis; Gastric cancer
• ISSN: 1007-9327; 2219-2840
• DOI: 10.3748/wjg.14.2110

AIM： TO examine the expression of connective tissue growth factor （CTGF）, also known as CCN2, in gastric carcinoma （GC）, and the correlation between the expression of CTGF, clinicopathologic features and clinical outcomes of patients with GC. METHODS： One hundred and twenty-two GC patients were included in the present study. All patients were followed up for at least 5 years. Proteins of CTGF were detected using the Powervision two-step immunostaining method, RESULTS： Of the specimens from 122 GC patients analyzed for CTGF expression, 58 （58/122, 47.5%） had a high CTGF expression in cytoplasm of gastric carcinoma cells and 64 （64/122, 52.5%） had a low CTGF expression. Patients with a high CTGF expression showed a higher incidence of lymph node metastasis than those with a low CTGF expression （P = 0.032）. Patients with a high CTGF expression had significantly lower 5-year survival rate than those with a low CTGF expression （27.6% vs 46.9%, P = 0.0178）, especially those staging Ⅰ ＋ Ⅱ ＋ Ⅲ （35.7% vs 65.2%, P = 0.0027）. CONCLUSION： GC patients with an elevated CTGF expression have more lymph node metastases and a shorter survival time. CTGF seems to be an independent prognostic factor for the successful differentiation of high-risk GC patients staging Ⅰ ＋ Ⅱ ＋ Ⅲ, Over-expression of CTGF in human GC cells results in an increased aggressive ability.