title: Prognostic value of type XXII and XXIV collagen mRNA expression in head and neck cancer patients.
abstract: Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (HNSCC) is the sixth most common type of cancer, affecting ~500,000 individuals worldwide annually. Collagen is the major constituent of the extracellular matrix component in tumors and plays a crucial role in tumor development. The aim of this study was to determine the mRNA expression of type XXI, XXII, XXIII and XXIV α1 collagen (COL21A1,COL22A1,COL23A1andCOL24A1, respectively) in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and investigate its correlation with disease progression. This study investigated the mRNA expression levels ofCOL21A1,COL22A1,COL23A1andCOL24A1in 70 HNSCC primary samples and 44 matched pairs of tumor and adjacent normal mucosal tissues using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Expression data were compared to the clinicopathological variables in order to determine the correlation between expression and disease progression. Our results demonstrated that the mRNA levels ofCOL22A1andCOL24A1were significantly higher in HNSCC tissues compared to those in the corresponding normal tissues from the same individuals (n=44; P<0.001 and P=0.019, respectively). TheCOL22A1mRNA levels were found to be significantly associated with lymph node metastasis (P=0.018) and pathological stage (P=0.024), whereas theCOL24A1mRNA levels were significantly associated with tumor size (P=0.045). The high expression levels ofCOL22A1andCOL24A1mRNA were statistically correlated with a decrease in disease-free survival (DFS) (log-rank test, P<0.001). The results of the multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that high expression levels of theCOL22A1andCOL24A1gene pair were associated with a high odds ratio for recurrence of 14.62 (95% confidence interval: 2.77-77.26; P=0.002). Therefore, the upregulation ofCOL22A1andCOL24A1mRNA may play a critical role in the progression of HNSCC and provide useful information as a prognostic predictor for HNSCC patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Kiyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Misawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Jichi Medical University, Tochigi, Japan.
authors.forename: Takeharu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kanazawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Imai
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Shiori
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Endo
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Daiki
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mochizuki
authors.affiliation: Department of Head and Neck, Cancer Institute Hospital of Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Hirofumi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fukushima
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Misawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mineta
keywords: head and neck squamous cell carcinoma; mRNA expression; quantitative polymerase chain reaction; type XXII α1 collagen; type XXIV α1 collagen