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Expression of E-cadherin, Twist, and p53 and their prognostic value in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma

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Abstract

Purpose

Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and p53 play important roles in controlling cancer invasion and metastasis. However, discrepancies still exist in the relationship between the expression of an epithelial marker E-cadherin and predicting short survival of patients in many types of cancer. In this study, we aimed to determine the levels of E-cadherin, Twist, and p53 in tumor tissues from patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and their clinical significances.

Methods

The protein expression of 112 OSCC tumor and 16 benign tissues was examined by immunohistochemistry staining. Overall survival rates of 112 OSCC patients were measured using Kaplan–Meier estimates and the log-rank tests.

Results

E-cadherin and p53 downregulation were found in 70 of 112 (62.5 %) and 66 of 112 (59.0 %), respectively, and Twist overexpression was found in 72 of 112 (64.3 %) studied cases of OSCC patients. Expression of E-cadherin was significantly associated with tumor location (P = 0.004) and mortality (P = 0.010). Patients with lower E-cadherin expression (P = 0.024), betel quid chewing (P = 0.006), smoking (P = 0.001), tumor size >2 cm (P = 0.001), advanced tumor stage (P = 0.043), and recurrence (P < 0.001) exhibited a poorer outcome. Multivariate analysis showed that E-cadherin is an independent marker for survival prediction. Additionally, low E-cadherin expression is significantly correlated with low p53 expression.

Conclusions

E-cadherin is an independent marker for survival prediction in OSCC. Co-evaluation of E-cadherin and p53 expression might be a valuable tool for predicting OSCC patient outcome.

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Fig. 1

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Abbreviations

EMT:

Epithelial–mesenchymal transition

IHC:

Immunohistochemistry

OSCC:

Oral squamous cell carcinoma

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Dr. S. Nieh from Tri-Service General Hospital for pathological examination assistance. The authors also thank Dr. I-Shou Chang (National Institute of Cancer Research, NHRI, Taiwan) for statistic support and helpful discussion. This study was supported by grant from Mackay Memorial Hospital (MMH9949) and by National Core Facility Program for Biotechnology Grants from National Science Council (NSC 101-2319-B-400-001) in Taiwan. This work was also supported by grants from National Health Research Institutes (102A1-CA-PP-08), National Science Council (NSC 102-2627-M-400-001), and Department of Health (DOH99-TD-C-111-004), Taiwan to A. Y.-L. Lee.

Conflict of interest

None declared.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Physiology, Mackay Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan

    Chi-Chen Fan

  2. Department of Medical Laboratory Science and Biotechnology, Yuanpei University, 306 Yuanpei Street, Hsinchu, 30015, Taiwan

    Chi-Chen Fan, Yen-An Cheng & Ting-Yu Kao

  3. Department of Pathology, Mackay Memorial Hospital, Mackay Medical College, Mackay Medicine, Nursing and Management College, Taipei, Taiwan

    Tao-Yeuan Wang

  4. National Institute of Cancer Research, National Health Research Institutes, 35 Keyan Road, Zhunan, Miaoli, 35053, Taiwan

    Shih Sheng Jiang, Chien-Wen Cheng & Alan Yueh-Luen Lee

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  1. Chi-Chen Fan
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Correspondence to Alan Yueh-Luen Lee or Ting-Yu Kao.

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Fan, CC., Wang, TY., Cheng, YA. et al. Expression of E-cadherin, Twist, and p53 and their prognostic value in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 139, 1735–1744 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-013-1499-9

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