title: Clinical significance of MUC1 and c-Met RT-PCR detection of circulating tumor cells in patients with gastric carcinoma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recently, several reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) techniques have been proven to be useful in the detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in cancer patients. We attempted to detect CTCs in patients with gastric cancer (GC) using a RT-PCR assay for c-Met and MUC1 and to evaluate their clinical value.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a RT-PCR assay, c-Met and MUC1 mRNAs were amplified in 52 GC patients and 36 healthy individuals. Analyses were carried out for their correlation with the patients' clinicopathologic features, the occurrence of new post-operative metastasis, as well as the overall survival rates.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the RT-PCR analysis of peripheral blood, 61.5% (32/52) and 71.2% (37/52) of GC patients were positive for c-Met and MUC1 mRNA, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of either mRNA detected in peripheral blood is 82.7% and 86.1%, respectively, with an accuracy of 84.1%. The detection of c-Met or MUC1 mRNA was significantly correlated with the depth of tumor invasion, lymph node metastases, TNM stage, vessel invasion, perineural involvement, and post-operative metastasis (all P<0.05). Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated that the overall survival rate of patients with positive c-Met or MUC1 mRNA expression in the peripheral blood was significantly shorter than in patients negative for c-Met or MUC1 mRNA expression (both P<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggest that using RT-PCR for the detection of c-Met or MUC1 mRNA may be a promising tool for the early detection of micro-metastatic CTCs in GC patients. Combination of these 2 tumor-specific mRNA markers would increase the detection rate and may be clinically helpful in predicting the outcome in GC patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Chi-Mei Hospital, Tainan, and Department of Clinical Laboratory, Kaohsiung Medical University, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yih-Huei
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Uen
authors.forename: Shiu-Ru
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Chan-Han
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Jan-Sing
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Hsieh
authors.forename: Chien-Yu
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Fang-Jung
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Tsung-Jen
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Jaw-Yuan
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D005260:Female; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018396:Mucin-1; D009077:Mucins / Q000235:genetics*; D009360:Neoplastic Cells, Circulating / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met / Q000235:genetics*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology*; D015996:Survival Rate
chemical_list: D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; C060192:MUC1 protein, human; D018396:Mucin-1; D009077:Mucins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met