Prognostic value of the human kallikrein gene 15 expression in ovarian cancer.
OBJECTIVE
KLK15 is a newly cloned human kallikrein gene. Many kallikreins were found to be differentially expressed in ovarian cancer. Like other kallikreins, KLK15 is regulated by steroid hormones in cancer cell lines. KLK15 is upregulated mainly by androgens and to a lesser extent by progestins. The purpose of this study was to examine the prognostic value of KLK15 in ovarian cancer tissues.


METHODS
We studied KLK15 expression by quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in 168 consecutive patients with epithelial ovarian cancer. Ten patients with benign ovarian tumors were also included in the study. An optimal cutoff point equal to the 50th percentile was defined based on the ability of KLK15 to predict progression-free survival and overall survival of the study population.


RESULTS
KLK15 expression levels were significantly higher in cancerous tissues compared with benign tumors. Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that KLK15 overexpression is a significant predictor of reduced progression-free survival (PFS; P <.001) and overall survival (OS; P <.009). Univariate and multivariate analyses indicate that KLK15 is an independent prognostic factor for PFS and OS. A weak positive correlation was found between KLK15 expression and serum CA-125 levels.


CONCLUSIONS
KLK15 expression, as assessed by quantitative RT-PCR, is an independent marker of unfavorable prognosis for ovarian cancer.
Yousef
George M
GM
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, 600 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X5, Canada.
Scorilas
Andreas
A
Katsaros
Dionyssios
D
Fracchioli
Stefano
S
Iskander
Lisa
L
Borgono
Carla
C
Rigault de la Longrais
Irene A
IA
Puopolo
Manuela
M
Massobrio
Marco
M
Diamandis
Eleftherios P
EP
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018394:CA-125 Antigen / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D006801:Humans; D007610:Kallikreins / Q000235:genetics*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D011379:Prognosis; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016019:Survival Analysis
D018394:CA-125 Antigen; D007610:Kallikreins