Pre-treatment gelatinases' serum levels and post-treatment changes in laryngeal cancer patients.
BACKGROUND
Laryngeal cancer, especially in the advanced stages, is a highly devastating disease, characterized by increased invasiveness and high rates of metastasis. Gelatinases A and B (MMP-2 and -9 respectively) are of particular interest due to their contribution to various stages of carcinogenesis. There is a growing body of evidence with regard to the prognostic value of certain MMPs and their possible role as tumour markers.


OBJECTIVE
To identify the pattern of alteration of serum gelatinases A and B in patients with laryngeal cancer following treatment, and a possible correlation with various clinicopathological parameters.


METHODS
Forty nine patients were included in this study. Pre-treatment and post-treatment serum samples were collected and processed by gelatin zymography and western blotting.


RESULTS
Only the latent forms of MMP-2 and -9 were identified. Both gelatinases were increased in the serum of laryngeal cancer patients compared to healthy individuals. Patients with supraglottic tumours and active smokers had significantly higher pre-treatment levels of proMMP-2 than patients with glottic tumours (p < 0.05) and ex-smokers (p < 0.05), respectively. Patients with primary disease and patients with lymph node involvement showed lower serum proMMP-9 pre-treatment levels than patients with recurrence (p < 0.05) and patients without neck disease (p < 0.1), respectively. During the follow-up period the proMMP-2 serum levels increased significantly in the first ten to fifteen days after treatment, gradually decreasing over the following months. The proMMP-9 serum levels showed a gradual decrease after treatment, which was statistically significant (p<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
The post-treatment alteration pattern of proMMP-9 serum levels shows a possible role of this molecule as a tumour marker in laryngeal cancer. Further research is necessary to clarify the contribution of both gelatinases to the disease progress and determine their role as prognostic factors and tumour markers.
Otolaryngology Department, AHEPA Hospital, Medical Faculty, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece ; Otolaryngology Department, University Hospital and School of Medical Sciences, University of Patras, Patras, Greece.
G
G
Tsiropoulos
Otolaryngology Department, University Hospital and School of Medical Sciences, University of Patras, Patras, Greece.
T
T
Papadas
Laboratory of Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Patras, Patras, Greece.
Ie
Ie
Triantaphyllidou
Otolaryngology Department, University Hospital and School of Medical Sciences, University of Patras, Patras, Greece.
S
S
Naxakis
Otolaryngology Department, AHEPA Hospital, Medical Faculty, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
K
K
Markou
Otolaryngology Department, AHEPA Hospital, Medical Faculty, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
S
S
Triaridis
Otolaryngology Department, AHEPA Hospital, Medical Faculty, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
I
I
Vital
Otolaryngology Department, University Hospital and School of Medical Sciences, University of Patras, Patras, Greece.
P
P
Goumas
Laboratory of Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Patras, Patras, Greece.
Dh
D
Vynios
MMP-2; MMP-9; gelatinases; head and neck cancer; laryngeal cancer; matrix metalloproteinases; serum