Prognostic significance of vascular endothelial growth factor D in gastric carcinoma.
The angiogenic factor called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-D is a ligand for VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR-2/KDR) and receptor-3 (VEGFR-3/Flt-4). It is implicated in the development of lymphatic vessels and promotion of lymphatic metastasis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prognostic significance of VEGF-D expression in patients with gastric carcinoma. We assessed the expression of VEGF-D in gastric carcinoma by immunohistochemistry on 143 consecutive patients' stored sections and evaluated the lymphatic vessel count (LVC) in tumors using the novel selective lymphatic endothelium marker D2-40. VEGF-D expression was observed in 55 (39%) tumor sections. The expression of VEGF-D correlated significantly with tumor size, T of the TNM classification, lymphatic and venous system invasion, LVC, lymph node metastasis, M of TNM, and pTNM stage. Multivariate analysis indicated that VEGF-D expression was an independent prognostic factor for both relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). Our data indicate the involvement of VEGF-D in tumor progression via lymphoangiogenic pathways. Practically, VEGF-D expression can be useful for predicting RFS and OS in patients with gastric carcinoma.
Shida
Atsuo
A
Department of Surgery, Jikei University School of Medicine, Nishi-shinbashi, 3-25-8, Minato-ku, Tokyo, 105-8461, Japan.
Fujioka
Shuichi
S
Ishibashi
Yoshio
Y
Kobayashi
Katsutoshi
K
Nimura
Hiroshi
H
Mitsumori
Norio
N
Suzuki
Yutaka
Y
Kawakami
Makio
M
Urashima
Mitsuyoshi
M
Yanaga
Katsuhiko
K
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality* / Q000556:secondary; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000401:mortality; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D015996:Survival Rate; D042643:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor D / Q000378:metabolism*
D042643:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor D