Overexpression of RRBP1 correlates with shorter survival time of nasopharyngeal carcinoma after radiotherapy

Abstract

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a kind of head and neck cancer rare in most of the world but common in some parts of the globe, including China. NPC is a common disorder in which malignant cells develop in the pharyngeal recess of the nasopharynx. However, the study aims to identify potential biomarkers or prognosis factors for detecting NPC patients with poor prognoses. In this retrospective study, we recruited 137 NPC patients who were admitted and enrolled on the Shanghai Pudong New Area Zhoupu Hospital and received radiotherapy and chemotherapy from July 2013 to December 2015. We collected samples from 137 NPC patients and performed immunohistochemical analysis. We evaluated the expression levels of Ribosome-binding protein 1 (RRBP1) in tissues of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and non-tumor tissues by immunohistochemistry. High RRBP1 was closely related to tumor size, lymphatic invasion, distant metastasis, and TNM stage. The RRBP1 expression level significantly correlated with decreased overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of NPC patients. RRBP1 expression levels correlate with the progression and prognosis of NPC patients after radiotherapy. Therefore, RRBP1 could be a potential biomarker for NPC patients with a higher risk of poor prognosis.