title: Maspin expression is a favorable prognostic factor in non-small cell lung cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate prognostic impact of maspin expression in patients with resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
  
  
  METHODS
  From 1996 to 2001, 439 patients underwent radical surgery for NSCLC at the Polytechnic University of the Marche Region. Maspin expression was detected as cytoplasmic and nuclear staining of neoplastic cells. For cytoplasmic staining, cases were classified as negative, low positive, and high positive. In positive cases, intensity of staining was also considered and scored. A similar classification was used for nuclear staining, but intensity was not considered.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The analysis showed that smoking history, pathologic stage of disease, N status, histologic grading, sex, and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status had a prognostic impact on overall survival (OS). Expression of maspin was also found to be an independent prognostic factor. A statistically significant longer OS was seen in patients with higher compared with lower expression of nuclear maspin, and poorer OS was present in patients with a higher intensity of cytoplasmic staining. Nuclear expression of maspin was also found to be an independent prognostic factor at multivariate analysis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results suggest that overexpression of maspin correlates with favorable prognosis in NSCLC. and may be a useful clinical marker.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Oncology, Section of Pathological Anatomy and Histopathology, Polytechnic University of the Marche Region, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria, Ospedali Riuniti Umberto I-GM Lancisi-G Salesi, Ancona, Italy. r.berardi@univpm.it
authors.forename: Rossana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Berardi
authors.forename: Alfredo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Santinelli
authors.forename: Azzurra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Onofri
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brunelli
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pierantoni
authors.forename: Eleonora
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pisa
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pagliacci
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Stramazzotti
authors.forename: Lina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zuccatosta
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mazzanti
authors.forename: Armando
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sabbatini
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gasparini
authors.forename: Italo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bearzi
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cascinu
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000378:metabolism / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism*; D001706:Biopsy; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000378:metabolism / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000379:methods; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015843:Serpins / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; C085344:SERPIN-B5; D015843:Serpins