title: Correlation between serum DNA methylation and prognosis in gastric cancer patients.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Digestive Surgery, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Hisashi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ikoma
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ichikawa
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Koike
authors.forename: Daito
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ikoma
authors.forename: Nobuyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tani
authors.forename: Kazuma
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Okamoto
authors.forename: Toshiya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ochiai
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.forename: Eigo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Otsuji
authors.forename: Hisakazu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamagishi
mesh_terms: 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
chemical_list: D015820:Cadherins; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D018168:Receptors, Retinoic Acid; C082925:retinoic acid receptor beta