Twist expression predicts poor clinical outcome of patients with clear cell carcinoma of the ovary.
OBJECTIVE
Twist is a highly conserved basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor that regulates the expression of E-cadherin and promotes the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, which is critical for tumor infiltration. We examined the distribution and expression of this molecule in clear cell carcinoma of the ovary (CCC) to elucidate their clinical significance.


METHODS
Paraffin sections from CCC tissues (n = 27) were immunostained with Twist antibody and staining intensities were evaluated. Stratified with various clinicopathological factors, overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were evaluated.


RESULTS
In the 27 carcinomas, negative Twist immunoexpression was observed in 14 cases (51.9%), and positive immunoexpression in 13 (48.1%). Twist, when categorized into negative versus positive expression, was associated with FIGO stage and peritoneal cytology. In addition, positive Twist expression significantly predicted a poorer OS and PFS compared with negative expression (p < 0.0001). Furthermore, the multivariate analyses revealed that positive Twist expression was an independent prognostic factor for OS and PFS of patients with CCC in this study (p = 0.0077 and 0.0033, respectively).


CONCLUSIONS
The current findings suggest that the assessment of Twist immunoreactivity may be a useful prognostic indicator and that Twist may play a critical role in the progression of CCC.
Kajiyama
Hiroaki
H
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan. kajiyama@med.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Hosono
Satoyo
S
Terauchi
Mikio
M
Shibata
Kiyosumi
K
Ino
Kazuhiko
K
Yamamoto
Eiko
E
Nomura
Seiji
S
Nawa
Akihiro
A
Kikkawa
Fumitaka
F
D018262:Adenocarcinoma, Clear Cell / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D018450:Disease Progression; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate; D051879:Twist-Related Protein 1 / Q000096:biosynthesis*
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D051879:Twist-Related Protein 1