Differences in the soluble HLA-G blood serum concentration levels in patients with ovarian cancer and ovarian and deep endometriosis.
OBJECTIVE
The relationship between endometriosis and cancer has been widely discussed in the literature but is still not well clarified. Perhaps significantly, soluble human leukocyte antigen-G (sHLA-G) has been identified in the microenvironment of both ovarian cancer and endometrioma. The aim of this study has been to evaluate the sHLA-G levels in the blood sera of women with deep endometriosis and ovarian endometrioma over the course of the menstrual cycle and to compare to the levels of sHLA-G in the blood sera of women with ovarian cancer.


METHODS
In our study, we examined the blood sera obtained from 123 patients operated on because of ovarian cancer (65 cases), ovarian endometrioma (30 cases), and deep endometriosis (28 cases). We decided to compare the levels of sHLA-G in patients with endometriosis to those found in patients with ovarian cancer with respect to the menstrual cycle phases. The sHLA-G concentration level was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit.


RESULTS
The level of sHLA-G concentration in the blood serum of patients with deep endometriosis fluctuates over the course of the menstrual cycle, and during the proliferative and secretory phases, it remains at a high level comparable to that found in patients with ovarian cancer. By contrast, the level of sHLA-G concentration in the blood serum of patients with ovarian endometrioma fluctuates minimally over the course of the different menstrual cycle phases and, as in patients with ovarian cancer, it remains at high level during the proliferative phase.


CONCLUSIONS
sHLA-G blood serum concentration levels would seem to provide important information regarding the degree of immune system regulation disturbance in both ectopic endometrial cells and the cancer cell suppressive microenvironment.
Mach
Pawel
P
Department of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Oncology of the Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland.
Blecharz
Pawel
P
Basta
Pawel
P
Marianowski
Piotr
P
Skret-Magierlo
Joanna
J
Kojs
Zbigniew
Z
Grabiec
Marek
M
Wicherek
Lukasz
L
D004715:Endometriosis / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006680:HLA Antigens / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D059951:HLA-G Antigens; D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010049:Ovarian Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D012995:Solubility
D006680:HLA Antigens; D059951:HLA-G Antigens; D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I