Association of cyclooxygenase 2, mammalian target of rapamycin and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 with the prognosis of gastric carcinoma

Abstract

Objective To investigate the correlation of cyclooxygenase 2(COX -2) , mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2/neu) with prognosis of gastric carcinoma, in order to provide experimental basis for gastric carcinoma clinical diagnosis and treatment. Methods The gastric carcinoma tissue samples and matched adjacent normal tissue samples in 80 gastric carcinoma cases after surgery from April 2008 to April 2010 were all selected from Zhejiang Provincial People' s Hospital. The differences in expression patterns of COX-2, mTOR and HER2/neu protein were compared. The correlation of COX-2, mTOR and HER2/neu protein with the clinical stage and prognosis of gastric carcinoma was described and assessed by Spearman rank correlation analysis, Kaplan-Meier method, long-rank test and Cox proportional hazards model. Results The expression rates of COX-2, mTOR and HER2/neu protein in 80 gastric carcinoma tissue samples were 57.5%(46 samples) , 36.3%(29 samples)和63.8%(51 samples) , which were all higher than adjacent normal tissue samples (u=5.643, 3.528 and 4.642, P all <0.01). COX-2 and HER2/neu protein expressions were positively correlated with tumor stages of gastric carcinoma (rs=0.257, u=2.284, P<0.05; rs=0.382, u=3.395, P< 0.01). The overall survival rate and relapsefree survival rate of the patients with COX-2 and HER2/neu positive expression were inferior to negative ones (P all <0.05). Furthermore, COX-2 expression was an independent prognostic factor for total survival time of gastric carcinoma (HR=1.643, 95% CI: 1.085 -2.489, P<0.05). Conclusions COX-2, mTOR and HER2/neu participate in the carcinogenesis of gastric carcinoma. COX-2 and HER2/neu are both progressive markers for gastric carcinoma, with COX-2 as an independent prognostic factor for the prognosis of gastric carcinoma. Key words: Stomach neoplasms; Prognosis; Cyclooxygenase 2; Mammalian target of rapamycin; Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2