[Expression and clinical significance of cyclooxygenase-2 in medulloblastoma].
OBJECTIVE
To gain an insight into the possible relationship between the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and the prognosis of the patients with medulloblastoma.


METHODS
COX-2 expression was investigated in 52 medulloblastoma and 10 normal cerebellar tissue specimens by immunohistochemistry. Kaplan-Meier analyses, Log-rank test, and Cox proportional hazard model were used to explore the relationship between the percentage of COX-2 expression and the survival period of patients with medulloblastoma.


RESULTS
Positive staining with COX-2 was either moderately or strongly observed in most of the medulloblastoma (51/52). Moreover, COX-2 was expressed not only in tumor cells, but also in the vascular endothelial cells of tumor. No COX-2 immunoreactivity was observed in normal cerebellar tissue. Kaplan-Meier analyses demonstrated that high COX-2 expression (> or = 50% of cells stained positive) correlated with poor survival for the study group as a whole (P < 0.0001).


CONCLUSIONS
Our study provides evidence that COX-2 is expressed in the majority of medulloblastomas and that a potential role of COX-2 inhibitors as an adjuvant therapy for brain tumors may exist.
Department of Neurosurgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
Quan-jun
QJ
Deng
Bo-yong
BY
Mao
Shang-fu
SF
Zhang
Jiang
J
Tang
En-ren
ER
Wang
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism; D002528:Cerebellar Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000201:enzymology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008527:Medulloblastoma / Q000201:enzymology*; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D015996:Survival Rate
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2; C496540:PTGS2 protein, human; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases