title: Cyclooxygenase-2 in Dukes B colon cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To demonstrate immunohistochemical expression of COX-2 protein in Dukes B colon cancer and to establish a correlation with clinicopathological parameters such as: age, gender, gradus, presence of vascular invasion and patient's overall survival.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed immunohistochemical analysis of formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded specimens form 152 Dukes B colon carcinomas, using the COX-2 monoclonal antibody. Immunohistochemical results were scored semi-quantitatively. Carcinomas were graded as low or high grade. Survival time was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method, and the log-rank test was used to assess the differences between groups. For multivariate analysis, Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to examine several parameters simultaneously.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Univariate analysis showed that positive staining for COX-2, high histological grade; vascular invasion; male gender and age over 60 years, were connected with shorter survival of patients with Dukes B colon cancer (0.023< p<0.001). However, multivariate analysis have shown that the high COX-2 expression in Duke's B colon cancer was unrelated to overall patient survival (RR=1.4; p=0.311).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Expression of COX-2 in tumor epithelial cells does not seem to be related to survival in patients with colon cancer Dukes B.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Split, Croatia.
authors.forename: Zeljko
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Sundov
authors.forename: Nenad
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kunac
authors.forename: Vesna
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Capkun
authors.forename: Marija
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kalebić
authors.forename: Nikica
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Druzijanić
authors.forename: Livia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Puljak
authors.forename: Snjezana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tomić
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000401:mortality; D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2 / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models
chemical_list: D051546:Cyclooxygenase 2; C496540:PTGS2 protein, human