Prognostic significance evaluation of B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL2) and Ki-67 expression in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma patients

Abstract

Introduction: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common lymphatic neoplasm, accounting for about 30–40% of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma cases. Objectives: DLBCL is a progressive disease with clinical, genetic and molecular heterogeneity. The prognostic value of B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL2) and Ki-67 in DLBCL patients has been controversial. Patients and Methods: In this study, we investigated the correlation of BCL2 and Ki-67 expression with clinical features such as age, gender, B symptoms and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels, subtypes of DLBCL, its staging and prognosis in 36 cases of DLBCL. The expression of BCL2 and Ki-67 was measured by immunohistochemistry. Results: There was no significant correlation between BCL2 expression and staging (P=0.082), however Ki-67 expression had a significant correlation with staging (P=0.002). There was no statistically significant correlation between BCL2 and Ki-67 with prognosis of the disease. We found a significant correlation between the germinal center B-cell (GCB) and non- GCB subtypes with BCL2 expression (P=0.024), since patients with non- GCB subtype had a higher BCL2 expression. Our study also demonstrated a significant relationship between BCL2 and Ki-67 expression, therefore, with the increase of the expression of a marker, another increases (P=0.045). Conclusion: BCL2 and Ki-67 expressions were not associated with prognosis. Overexpression of Ki-67 was associated with higher clinical stages. BCL2 expression is higher in non-GCB subtype of DLBCL. Therefore, our study shows that the subsequent studies of BCL2 and other biomarkers in the DLBCL should be based on the DLBCL subtypes.