Abstract
Protein tyrosine kinase 7 (PTK7) has been studied in various tumors, but its role in prostate cancer remains unknown. This study is aimed to investigate the prognostic and predictive significance of PTK7 in patients with prostate cancer. PTK7 expression was evaluated by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot analysis in 20 pairs of benign prostatic hyperplasia specimens and prostate cancer specimens. Then, we examined the immunohistochemical expression of PTK7 in 180 prostate cancer specimens and evaluated its clinical significances. Elevated PTK7 expression was significantly associated with lymph node metastases, seminal vesicle invasion, prostate cancer stage, the higher preoperative prostate-specific antigen, the higher Gleason score, angiolymphatic invasion, and biochemical recurrence. The results revealed that the overexpression of PTK7 in prostate cancer was an independent prognostic factor for poor overall survival and biochemical recurrence-free survival. The present data provide evidence that PTK7 predicts lymph node metastasis and poor overall survival and biochemical recurrence-free survival, highlighting its potential function as a therapeutic target for prostate cancer.
Highlights
Prostate cancer is the second most common malignancy diagnosed in men worldwide, being one of the major causes of cancer-related morbidity and mortality [1]
Western blot demonstrated a specific band for Protein tyrosine kinase 7 (PTK7) protein at 118 kDa
The difference in PTK7 expression between prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia tissues reflected at protein level was investigated using Western blot
Summary
Prostate cancer is the second most common malignancy diagnosed in men worldwide, being one of the major causes of cancer-related morbidity and mortality [1]. Prostate cancer-related mortality results from distant metastases [2]. Most patients with prostate cancer show an indolent clinical course after radical prostatectomy, few experience clinical relapse and die of the disease [3,4]. The first evident sign of relapse following radical prostatectomy is a rising prostate-specific antigen. A major issue with prostate-specific antigen is its lack of specificity, as other non-malignant diseases of the prostate display elevated serum prostate-specific antigen levels, which can lead to over-diagnosis [5]. Prostate-specific antigen is a poor indicator of aggressiveness, leading to potential over-treatment of many prostate cancer patients
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