title: Diagnostic Capacity of RASSF1A Promoter Methylation as a Biomarker in Tissue, Brushing, and Blood Samples of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.
abstract: Methylation of the RAS association domain family protein 1A (RASSF1A) promoter has been observed in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). This study investigated the correlation of RASSF1A promoter methylation with clinicopathological features and its utility as a diagnostic biomarker in NPC. A total of 926 patients with NPC and 495 non-tumor controls were analyzed in this study. RASSF1A promoter methylation was notably higher in NPC compared with non-tumor tissue, brushing and blood samples. RASSF1A promoter methylation was associated with clinical stage, lymph node status, distant metastasis, and T classification of patients with NPC, although it was not linked to age and sex. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, and AUC (area under the curve) of RASSF1A promoter methylation were determined in NPC samples vs. non-tumor samples (tissue: sensitivity=0.72, specificity=0.99, AUC=0.98; brushing: sensitivity=0.56, specificity=1.00, AUC=0.94; blood: sensitivity=0.11, specificity=0.98, AUC=0.97). Our findings show that RASSF1A promoter methylation may be correlated with the development, progression and metastasis of NPC. RASSF1A promoter methylation is a promising noninvasive biomarker for the diagnosis of NPC from tissue and brushing samples.
authors.affiliation: The Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315020, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: yemeng@nbu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: The Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315020, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: huangtao334@163.com.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: The Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315020, People's Republic of China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pathophysiology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315211, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Chao
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ni
authors.affiliation: The Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315020, People's Republic of China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pathophysiology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315211, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: The Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315020, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Si
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D019540:Area Under Curve; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D019175:DNA Methylation; D016208:Databases, Factual; D006801:Humans; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D000077274:Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D012372:ROC Curve; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; C411762:RASSF1 protein, human; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins
keywords: Biomarker; Diagnosis; Methylation; NPC; Prognosis; RASSF1A