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Prognostic implication of serum hepatocyte growth factor in stage II/III breast cancer patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy

  • Original Article – Clinical Oncology
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Abstract

Purpose

In stage II/III breast cancer, neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) is a standard treatment. Although several biomarkers are used to predict prognosis in breast cancer, there is no reliable predictive biomarker for NAC success. Recently, the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and cMet signaling pathway demonstrated to be involved in breast cancer tumor progression, and its potential as a biomarker is under active investigation. In this study, we assessed the potential of serum HGF as a prognostic biomarker for NAC efficacy.

Methods

Venous blood samples were drawn from patients diagnosed with stage II/III breast cancer and treated with NAC in Seoul National University Hospital from August 2004 to November 2009. Serum HGF level was determined using an ELISA system. We reviewed the medical records of the patients and investigated the association of HGF level with patients’ clinicopathologic characteristics.

Results

A total of 121 female patients (median age = 45 years old) were included. Median level of HGF was 934 pg/ml (lower quartile: 772, upper quartile: 1145 pg/ml). Patients with higher HGF level than median value were significantly more likely to have clinically detectable regional node metastasis (p = 0.017, Fisher’s exact test). Patients with complete and partial response according to the American Joint Committee on Cancer 7th Edition criteria tended to have higher HGF level (p = 0.105 by t test). Patients with an HGF level higher than the upper quartile value had longer relapse-free survival than the other patients (106 vs. 85 months, p = 0.008).

Conclusions

High serum HGF levels in breast cancer patients are associated with clinically detectable regional node metastasis and, paradoxically, with longer relapse-free survival in stage II/III breast cancer.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by National OncoVenture/National Cancer Center Korea. This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (2009-0093820).

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Cancer Research Institute, Seoul National University College of Medicine, 101 Daehakro, Jongro-gu, Seoul, 110-799, Korea

      Hyori Kim, Tae-Yong Kim, Ahrum Min, Hye-Seon Ham, Kyung-Hun Lee, Bhumsuk Keam, Sae-Won Han, Do-Youn Oh, Wonshik Han, In Ae Park, Tae-You Kim, Dong-Young Noh & Seock-Ah Im

    2. Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehakro, Jongro-gu, Seoul, 110-744, Korea

      Jeonghwan Youk, Yaewon Yang, Tae-Yong Kim, Seongcheol Cho, Kyung-Hun Lee, Bhumsuk Keam, Sae-Won Han, Do-Youn Oh, Tae-You Kim & Seock-Ah Im

    3. Department of Pathology, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehakro, Jongro-gu, Seoul, 110-744, Korea

      Han Suk Ryu & In Ae Park

    4. Department of Surgery, Seoul National University Hospital, 101 Daehakro, Jongro-gu, Seoul, 110-744, Korea

      Wonshik Han & Dong-Young Noh

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    Correspondence to Tae-Yong Kim or Seock-Ah Im.

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    Conflict of interest

    Im SA received research funding from AstraZeneca and has an advisory role for AstraZeneca, Novartis and Roche without compensation. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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    The study protocol was approved by the Institutional Review Board in SNUH (H-0610-020-186 and H-1504-091-666). Written informed consent was obtained from all patients in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

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    Hyori Kim and Jeonghwan Youk have contributed equally.

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    Kim, H., Youk, J., Yang, Y. et al. Prognostic implication of serum hepatocyte growth factor in stage II/III breast cancer patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 142, 707–714 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-015-2072-5

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