title: Cyclooxygenase-2 expression is related with localization, proliferation, and overall survival in canine melanocytic neoplasms.
abstract: A direct relationship has been firmly established between cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression and malignant behavior in human melanoma. This report examines the relationship between COX-2 expression and tumor location, mitotic and proliferative indices, degree of T CD3(+) lymphocyte infiltration, overall survival, and frequency of recurrence and metastasis of 57 melanocytic tumors (25 oral and 32 cutaneous). COX-2 was highly or moderately expressed in 88% of oral neoplasms (22 of 25), whereas for their cutaneous counterparts, COX-2 expression was low or insignificant in 75% of cases (24 of 32). High and moderate COX-2 expression levels were observed in 73% of melanocytic tumors with a mitotic index ≥ 3 per 10 high-power fields (26 of 36), whereas in 81% of tumors with a mitotic index < 3 (17 of 21), expression was mild or absent. There were 41 cases with known clinical outcomes; of those showing high, moderate, and mild COX-2 expression, 83.3% (10 of 12), 37.5% (3 of 8), and 25% (2 of 8) died, respectively, whereas 100% of animals showing no COX-2 expression (13 of 13) were still alive at the last follow-up. COX-2 expression was statistically correlated with tumor location, mitotic and percentage Ki-67 proliferative indices, and overall survival, frequency of neoplastic recurrence and metastasis. Regression analysis also showed disease-specific predictive value for COX-2 expression for subjects with melanocytic neoplasms. Additionally, only high COX-2 expression showed significant differences in overall survival, in comparison with moderate, mild, or absent expression. These results suggest that high COX-2 expression may be considered a prognostic biomarker and potentially as a target for therapeutic and preventive strategies in canine melanocytic neoplasms.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Anatomía y Anatomía Patológica Comparadas, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain. cmmarti@um.es
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Peñafiel-Verdú
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vilafranca
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ramírez
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Méndez-Gallego
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Buendía
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sánchez
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2 / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery / Q000662:veterinary*; D008940:Mitotic Index; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery / Q000662:veterinary*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery / Q000662:veterinary*; D016019:Survival Analysis
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2