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Vol.38 No.6 contents | Japanese/English |
- Original Article -
Prognostic Significance of Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMPs), Tissue Inhibitors of Metalloproteinases (TIMPs) and Thymidine Phosphorylase (TP) in Lung Cancer
Ikkoh Ichinoseki, Takao Tsushima, Satoshi Taniguchi, Seiji Takahashi, Ryou Hatanaka and Matsurou FukushimaFirst Department of Surgery, Hirosaki University School of Medicine
We studied the expression of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs), and thymidine phosphorylas (TP) in 242 resected lung cancers by immunohistochemical staining and investigated their value as prognostic factors. Among the patients studied, those with negative staining for MMP-2, MMP-9,TIMP-2, or TP had a significantly higher postoperative disease-free survival rate than those with positive staining. Even when the analysis was limited to subjects in pathological stage I, patients showing negative staining for MMP-2, MMP-9, or TP had longer disease-free survival than patients showing positive staining. In stage I adenocarcinoma, patients with negative staining for MMP-2 or MMP-9 had longer disease-free survival than those with positive staining, but there was no significant difference in patients with squamous cell carcinoma. Multivariate analysis showed that MMP-9, N factor, and T factor were independent prognostic factors for the disease-free survival of patients with lung cancer. We conclude that the expression of these parameters may be useful index for evaluation of the clinical prognosis of lung cancer and determination of therapeutic measures.
key words: MMPs, TIMPs, Thymidine phosphorylase, Prognostic factors, Lung cancer
Received: March 4, 1998
Accepted: September 16, 1998
JJLC 38 (6): 691-701, 1998
