Evaluation of effect of epidermal growth factor receptor and vascular endothelial growth factor overexpression in survival of patients with glioblastoma multiforme

Abstract

Background. In the central nervous system, glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one of the most important neoplasms in adults. Amplification of EGFR and VEGF genes is common in GBM. However, the role of overexpression of EGFR and VEGF in survival of patients with GBM has been a contentious issue. Therefore, we performed the present study to assess the survival rate of patients with EGFR and VEGF overexpression. Materials and methods. Resected samples of GBM patients were evaluated by immunohistochemistry for overexpression of VEGF and EGFR. The patients were followed up for a year. Results. The mean±sd of age of patients was 56.2±13.1 years. The majority of the patients were male (65.9%). Most of the patients had primary GBM (67%), notwithstanding 33% of the patients with secondary GBM. Moreover, 19.2% and 49.5% of the samples were VEGF-positive and EGFR-positive, respectively. Overall 6, 12-, and 18-month survival rates were shown to be 61.5±5.1%, 17.6±4%, and 4.4±2.1%, respectively. There was a significant difference between the mean±se survival rate in VEGF-negative patients (12±1.9 months) VEGF-positive patients (7.8±0.5 months) (P=0.045). Conclusions. We found an association between VEGF and EGFR over-expression and the survival rate of GBM patients. The VEGF overexpression was significantly associated with the overall survival rate of the GBM patients, but failed to have a prognostic value for their mortality rate. However, EGFR was a predictor of overall survival rate and mortality of GBM patients. Moreover, VEGF overexertion has a stronger association with survival rate in GBM, compared to EGFR overexpression.