title: Minichromosome maintenance protein 7 is a risk factor for recurrence in patients with Dukes C colorectal cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  It has been hypothesized that minichromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins, which are replicative control factors, can be used to detect tumor proliferation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression of MCM in colorectal cancer tissues and correlate it to clinical outcomes.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included 145 patients with colorectal cancer who underwent curative surgery, from January 2002 until December 2004, at the Kurume University Hospital in Fukuoka, Japan. The median follow-up duration was 87 months. The expression of MCM7 in tissues was studied by immuno-histochemical staining. The labeling index (LI) of MCM7 was calculated by dividing the number of positively-stained cells by the total number of cells counted. We divided samples into two groups: positive (MCM7 LI 76% or higher) and negative (MCM7 LI less than 76%).
  
  
  RESULTS
  In patients with Dukes A and B, there were no significant differences in either overall survival (OS) or recurrence-free survival (RFS) between patents with MCM7-positive and those with MCM7-negative disease. On the other hand, in patients with Dukes C, there was significantly worse OS and RFS for patients with MCM7-positive compared to those with MCM7-negative disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found that the expression of MCM7 is an independent risk factor for RFS in patients with Dukes C colorectal cancer. Further studies are required to investigate the validity of MCM7 protein expression for its potential clinical use in colorectal cancer therapy and prognosis.
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Yoshiaki
authors: Y
authors: Ishibashi
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan kinugasa_tetsushi@med.kurume-u.ac.jp.
authors: Tetsushi
authors: T
authors: Kinugasa
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Yoshito
authors: Y
authors: Akagi
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Takafumi
authors: T
authors: Ohchi
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Yukito
authors: Y
authors: Gotanda
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Natsuki
authors: N
authors: Tanaka
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Shinya
authors: S
authors: Fujino
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Kotaro
authors: K
authors: Yuge
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Shiro
authors: S
authors: Kibe
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Naohiro
authors: N
authors: Yoshida
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Tomoaki
authors: T
authors: Mizobe
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Yosuke
authors: Y
authors: Oka
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Takefumi
authors: T
authors: Yoshida
authors: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors: Kazuo
authors: K
authors: Shirouzu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen / Q000032:analysis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D064168:Minichromosome Maintenance Complex Component 7 / Q000502:physiology*; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000209:etiology*; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D019394:Ki-67 Antigen; C101624:MCM7 protein, human; D064168:Minichromosome Maintenance Complex Component 7
keywords: MCM7; colorectal cancer; risk factor