Expression level of pre-B-cell leukemia transcription factor 2 (PBX2) as a prognostic marker for gingival squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract

In this study, we investigated the interrelationship between clinicopathologic findings and pre-B-cell leukemia transcription factor 2 (PBX2) expression in gingival squamous cell carcinoma (GSCC). Expression level of PBX2 was immunohistochemically examined in 66 GSCC subjects (30 men and 36 women) with ages ranging from 42 to 85 (median 64.5) years, in which staining intensity in tumor cells was categorized as either weaker (level 1) or equal to/stronger (level 2) than that in the endothelial cells. PBX2 expression is correlated with valosin-containing protein (VCP) expression. Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed a high level of PBX2 expression to be a poor prognosticator for disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS), and PBX2 expression was an independent prognostic factor for both DFS and OS in GSCC. PBX2 expression level in GSCC is prognostic. PBX2 may be a useful marker to identify the potential for progression in GSCC.