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Expressions of thymidylate synthase, thymidine phosphorylase, class III β-tubulin, and excision repair cross-complementing group 1 predict response in advanced gastric cancer patients receiving capecitabine plus paclitaxel or cisplatin

  • Original Article
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Chinese Journal of Cancer Research

Abstract

Objective

To evaluate the role of class III β-tubulin (TUBB3), thymidylate synthase (TS), thymidine phosphorylase (TP), and excision repair cross-complementing group 1 (ERCC1) in clinical outcome of advanced gastric cancer patients receiving capecitabine plus paclitaxel or cisplatin.

Methods

The clinical data and tumor specimens from 57 advanced gastric cancer patients receiving first-line capecitabine plus paclitaxel (cohort 1, n=36) and capecitabine plus cisplatin (cohort 2, n=21) were retrospectively collected, and TUBB3, TS, TP, and ERCC1 expressions were detected by real-time quantitative PCR. The associations between expressions of biomarkers and response or survival were analyzed statistically.

Results

The median age of 57 patients was 57 years (range: 27–75 years) with 38 males and 19 females. Of all patients, the response rates of patients with high TP, low TP and high TS, low TS expressions were 57.1%, 27.6% (P=0.024), and 55.2%, 28.6% (P=0.042), respectively. Among cohort 1, the response rates and median overall survivals of patients with low and high TUBB3 expressions were 61.1% vs. 33.3% (P=0.095) and 13.8 months vs. 6.6 months (P=0.019), respectively; the response rate (87.5%) of patients with low TUBB3 and high TP expressions was higher than that (14.3%) of patients with high TUBB3 and low TP expressions (P=0.01). Among cohort 2, the response rates of patients with low ERCC1 and high ERCC1 expressions were 45.5% and 20.0% respectively (P=0.361).

Conclusion

TUBB3, TS and TP expressions could predict the response of advanced gastric cancer patients receiving capecitabine-based and paclitaxel-based chemotherapy. These results will be further confirmed in future large samples.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education), Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Peking University School of Oncology, Beijing Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China

    Ming Lu, Jing Gao, Xi-cheng Wang & Lin Shen

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  1. Ming Lu
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  2. Jing Gao
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  3. Xi-cheng Wang
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  4. Lin Shen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lin Shen.

Additional information

This work was supported by the National “863” High-Tech Res & Dev Program of China (No. 2006AA02A402) and Beijing Municipal Science & Technology Commission Program “Optimization of pharmacotherapy and individual selection in gastric cancer” (No. D101100050010023).

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Lu, M., Gao, J., Wang, Xc. et al. Expressions of thymidylate synthase, thymidine phosphorylase, class III β-tubulin, and excision repair cross-complementing group 1 predict response in advanced gastric cancer patients receiving capecitabine plus paclitaxel or cisplatin. Chin. J. Cancer Res. 23, 288–294 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11670-011-0288-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11670-011-0288-8

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