Importance of thymidine phosphorylase expression at the invasive front of T3 rectal cancer as a prognostic factor.
OBJECTIVE
Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and thymidine phosphorylase (TP) are angiogenic factors. We evaluated the relationship between the degree of expression of binary angiogenic factors and the malignant potential of colorectal cancer.


METHODS
This study was conducted in 61 patients with T3 rectal cancer who underwent surgical curative resection between 1998 and 2002. Paraffin-embedded sections of their surgical specimens were immunostained for VEGF and TP. The relationship between the expression level of binary angiogenic factors and lymph node metastasis was evaluated.


RESULTS
Expression of VEGF was present only in the tumor cells of all patients, and expression was absent in the stromal cells around the invasive front of the tumor. Expression of TP was mainly present in the stromal cells around the cancer nests or around the invasive margin of the cancer. There was no relationship between expression of TP in the stromal cells around the invasive front of the tumor and lymph node metastasis. However, there was a significant relationship between expression of TP at the invasive front of the tumor and lymph node metastasis (p = 0.014). Moreover, TP expression in the tumor cells was the only independent factor that correlated with the postoperative recurrence (p = 0.024) with an odds ratio of 11.973 by multivariate logistic regression analysis.


CONCLUSIONS
Expression of TP at the invasive front of the tumor may be a useful indicator of the malignant potential of advanced rectal cancer.
Yoshimoto
Kazuhisa
K
Department of Surgery, Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
Kawahara
Hidejiro
H
Kobayashi
Susumu
S
Kashiwagi
Hideyuki
H
Hirai
Katsuya
K
Yanaga
Katsuhiko
K
D000368:Aged; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012004:Rectal Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D013939:Thymidine Phosphorylase / Q000378:metabolism*; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000378:metabolism
D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; D013939:Thymidine Phosphorylase