ZNF582 hypermethylation as a prognostic biomarker for malignant transformation of oral lesions.

Abstract

This hospital-based cohort study evaluated whether ZNF582 and PAX1methylation levels at baseline can be used as biomarkers to identify lesions with a high potential for malignant transformation in patients with normal mucosa and oral potentially malignant disorders. We recruited 171 adult patients with normal mucosa and oral potentially malignant disorders in 2012-2014. They were followed until 2017. Outcomes, including advanced histopathological findings and oral cancer occurrence, were obtained from medical charts, the Taiwan Cancer Registry, and cause-of-death data. Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to examine the association of ZNF582 and PAX1methylation levels at baseline with subsequent outcome occurrences. After 260,192days of follow-up, 11 cases of oral cancer and 4 cases of advanced histopathological progression occurred. Patients with higher ZNF582 and PAX1methylation levels at baseline had a higher incidence of disease progression. After adjustment for all studied factors using Cox proportional hazards regression models, ZNF582m level (adjusted hazard ratio, 11.41; 95% CI, 2.05-63.36; p=0.005) was the only significant and independent predictor of disease progression. ZNF582hypermethylation can be an effective and noninvasive biomarker for identifying oral lesions with a high potential for malignant transformation.