Inhibin-alpha subunit is an independent prognostic parameter in human endometrial carcinomas: analysis of inhibin/activin-alpha, -betaA and -betaB subunits in 302 cases.
Inhibins are dimeric glycoproteins, composed of an alpha-subunit (inhibin-alpha) and one of two possible beta-subunits (betaA or betaB), with substantial roles in human reproduction and in endocrine-responsive tumours. The aims of this study were to determine the distribution of inhibin-alpha, -betaA and -betaB subunits in malignant human endometrial tissue and the assessment of an association with specific clinicopathologic tumour features and clinical outcome. A series of 302 endometrial cancer tissue samples were immunohistochemically analysed with monoclonal antibodies against inhibin subunits. The inhibin-alpha subunit showed a significant association with histological grading, surgical staging, lymph node status and diabetes in patients with endometrial cancer. Interestingly, loss of inhibin-alpha expression resulted in a poorer survival of endometrial cancer patients. Additionally, survival analysis demonstrated that inhibin-alpha immunoreactivity was an independent prognostic factor for progression-free survival, cause-specific survival as well as for overall survival. In contrast, although inhibin-betaA- and -betaB subunits showed a significant association between endometrial histological subtypes and histological grading, both subunits were not found to be associated with survival in endometrial cancer patients. Therefore, inhibin-alpha immunostaining might be used as a simple and efficient marker to identify high-risk patients leading to the selection of patients for an aggressive adjuvant therapy.
Mylonas
Ioannis
I
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Electronic address: ioannis.mylonas@med.uni-muenchen.de.
Worbs
Silvia
S
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Shabani
Naim
N
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany; Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Landeskrankenhaus Schärding, Schärding, Austria.
Kuhn
Christina
C
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Kunze
Susanne
S
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Schulze
Sandra
S
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Dian
Darius
D
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Gingelmaier
Andrea
A
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Schindlbeck
Christian
C
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Brüning
Ansgar
A
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Sommer
Harald
H
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Jeschke
Udo
U
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
Friese
Klaus
K
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Maistrasse 11, 80337 Munich, Bavaria, Germany.
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis*; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D028322:Inhibin-beta Subunits / Q000032:analysis; D007265:Inhibins / Q000032:analysis*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D016019:Survival Analysis
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; C422402:INHBB protein, human; C103008:inhibin beta A subunit; C094377:inhibin-alpha subunit; D007265:Inhibins; D028322:Inhibin-beta Subunits