Aldehyde Dehydrogenase-1 Expression Predicts Unfavorable Outcomes in Patients with Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

• Published in: Anticancer research Vol. 36; no. 1; pp. 343 - 349
• Main Authors: Ji, Yasai, Li, Xiaoli, Li, Yaqing, Zhong, Yali, Cao, Jing, Xu, Ruiping, Wang, Junsheng, Zhou, Fuyou, Li, Xiaoran, Yu, Dandan, Wen, Jian-Guo, Goscinski, Mariusz Adam, Zhang, Mingzhi, Nesland, Jahn M, Suo, Zhenhe
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Greece 01.01.2016
• Subjects: Biomarkers, Tumor - metabolism; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell - pathology; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell - therapy; Disease-Free Survival; Esophageal Neoplasms - pathology; Esophageal Neoplasms - therapy; Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma; Female; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Isoenzymes - metabolism; Male; Middle Aged; Prognosis; Retinal Dehydrogenase - metabolism; Treatment Outcome; esophageal squamous cell carcinoma; immunohistochemistry; prognosis; Aldehyde dehydrogenase-1
• ISSN: 1791-7530

Aldehyde dehydrogenase-1 (ALDH1) has been shown to be a potential cancer stem cell marker in different types of cancer. However, the role of its expression in tumor cells and the microenvironment in different types of cancer is still controversial. ALDH1 protein was immunohistochemically investigated and analyzed in 157 samples of surgically dissected esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) tissues. ALDH1 protein expression in ESCC tumor cells was significantly associated with poor differentiation (p<0.05) and strongly positive ALDH1 expression in tumor cells was related with shorter overall survival (p<0.05), while the expression of ALDH1 in ESCC stromal cells had no significant relationship with clinicopathological features (p>0.05). High expression of cancer stem cell marker ALDH1 in ESCC cells may thus portend a poor prognosis. However, its expression in the tumor microenvironment did not appear to have a role in ESCC behavior. More studies are warranted to find out the mechanisms to explain this.