title: Combined Ang-2 and VEGF serum levels: holding hands as a new integral biomarker in non-small-cell lung cancers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Evaluate if serum levels of VEGF and Ang-2 are correlated in non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) and its implications in the diagnostic and prognostic of the disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Unselected cohort of 145 NSCLC patients and 30 control individuals. The serum levels of Ang-2 and VEGF of each patient were measured by ELISA prior to treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Serum levels of Ang-2 and VEGF are correlated (p < 0.0001). High serum levels of Ang-2 and VEGF isolated and both combined (high(Ang-2/VEGF)) correlate with likelihood of presenting NSCLC (p = 0.016; p = 0.003; p < 0.0001, respectively). Serum levels of Ang-2 and high(Ang-2/VEGF) but not VEGF alone are independent prognostic factors (p = 0.001; p = 0.619; p = 0.005). High(Ang-2/VEGF) serum levels could be exploited as a new valuable integral biomarker in NSCLC.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Português de Oncologia - Porto, Molecular Oncology Group, Portugal.|Faculdade de Medicina - University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ana Luísa
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Coelho
authors.affiliation: Centro Hospitalar do Porto - Medical Oncology Department, Porto, Portugal.|Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar - University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: António Manuel
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Araújo
authors.affiliation: Instituto Português de Oncologia - Porto, Molecular Oncology Group, Portugal.|Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar - University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Mónica Patrícia
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Gomes
authors.affiliation: Instituto Português de Oncologia - Porto, Molecular Oncology Group, Portugal.|Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar - University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Raquel Jorge
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Catarino
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular - Immunobiology Research Group, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Elva Bonifácio
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.affiliation: Faculdade de Medicina - University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.|Centro Hospitalar de S. João - Pulmonology Department, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Agostinho Marques
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Lopes
authors.affiliation: Instituto Português de Oncologia - Porto, Molecular Oncology Group, Portugal.|Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar - University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.|Liga Portuguesa Contra o Cancro (NRNorte) - Research Department, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Rui Manuel
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Medeiros
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D042702:Angiopoietin-2 / Q000097:blood*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000401:mortality; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000401:mortality; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D063868:Patient Outcome Assessment; D011379:Prognosis; D012372:ROC Curve; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012307:Risk Factors; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D042702:Angiopoietin-2; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A
keywords: Ang-2; NSCLC; VEGF; antiangiogenic therapies; biomarkers