Hypoxia and vascular endothelial growth factor expression in human squamous cell carcinomas using pimonidazole as a hypoxia marker

• Published in: Cancer research (Chicago, Ill.) Vol. 58; no. 17; pp. 3765 - 3768
• Main Authors: RALEIGH, J. A, CALKINS-ADAMS, D. P, RINKER, L. H, BALLENGER, C. A, WEISSLER, M. C, FOWLER, W. C, NOVOTNY, D. B, VARIA, M. A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia, PA American Association for Cancer Research 01.09.1998
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Biomarkers; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell - metabolism; Cell Hypoxia; Endothelial Growth Factors - analysis; Female; Female genital diseases; Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics; Head and Neck Neoplasms - metabolism; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Lymphokines - analysis; Medical sciences; Nitroimidazoles - metabolism; Otorhinolaryngology (head neck, general aspects and miscellaneous); Otorhinolaryngology. Stomatology; Tumors; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms - metabolism; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors; Human; Imidazole derivatives; Squamous cell carcinoma; Gene product; Tumoral tissue; Pimonidazole; Malignant tumor; Uterine cervix; Gene expression; Female genital diseases; Vascular endothelium growth factor; Head and neck; ENT disease; Hypoxia; Advanced stage; Uterine cervix diseases
• ISSN: 0008-5472; 1538-7445

Hypoxia in human tumors is associated with poor prognosis, but the molecular mechanisms underlying this association are poorly understood. One possibility is that hypoxia is linked to malignant progression through vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) induction and the associated angiogenesis and metastasis. The present clinical study measures hypoxia and VEGF expression on a cell-by-cell basis in human squamous cell carcinomas to test the hypothesis that hypoxia and VEGF protein expression are coupled in human tumors. Eighteen patients with invasive squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix and head and neck have been investigated by a quantitative image analysis of immunostained sections from their tumors. The hypoxia marker pimonidazole was used to measure tumor hypoxia, and a commercially available antibody was used to measure VEGF protein expression. A quantitative immunohistochemical comparison of hypoxia and VEGF protein expression revealed no correlation between the two factors.