Correlation between serum DNA methylation and prognosis in gastric cancer patients.
BACKGROUND
Gastric carcinogenesis is thought to involve multiple genetic and epigenetic changes. The relationships between the promoter methylation status of relevant genes in the serum and outcomes in patients undergoing curative gastrectomy for cancer were investigated.


METHODS
Pre-operative serum samples obtained from 97 gastric cancer patients, who underwent radical gastrectomy, were subjected to methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) assays for the p16, E-cadherin and retinoic acid receptor beta (RARbeta) genes.


RESULTS
Promoter hypermethylation of p16, E-cadherin and the RARbeta gene was detected in sera from 18 (19%), 24 (25%) and 24 patients (25%), respectively. Altogether, 47 patients (48%) showed hypermethylation of at least one gene analyzed. Survival curves differed significantly between groups defined by the methylation status of E-cadherin (p<0.05), but not those defined by p16 or RARbeta (p =0. 77 and 0. 19, respectively).


CONCLUSIONS
Serum MSP assays can provide not only diagnostic, but also prognostic information in gastric cancer.
Ikoma
Hisashi
H
Department of Digestive Surgery, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
Ichikawa
Daisuke
D
Koike
Hiroshi
H
Ikoma
Daito
D
Tani
Nobuyuki
N
Okamoto
Kazuma
K
Ochiai
Toshiya
T
Ueda
Yuji
Y
Otsuji
Eigo
E
Yamagishi
Hisakazu
H
D015820:Cadherins / Q000235:genetics; D019175:DNA Methylation; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D005743:Gastrectomy; D019942:Genes, p16; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D018168:Receptors, Retinoic Acid / Q000235:genetics; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000601:surgery; D015996:Survival Rate
D015820:Cadherins; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D018168:Receptors, Retinoic Acid; C082925:retinoic acid receptor beta