Expression of cyclooxygenase-2, vascular endothelial growth factor, and epidermal growth factor receptor in Chinese patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract

Background: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a frequently occurring cancer with poor prognosis despite combined therapeutic strategies. The aim of the current study was to elucidate a further finding on the clinicopathologic significance of immunohistochemical expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in Chinese patients with ESCC.

Methods: Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded surgically resected tumor samples were obtained from 140 randomly selected Chinese patients with ESCC. Sections were immunohistochemically stained for COX-2, VEGF, and EGFR. The correlations between clinicopathological features and the high expression of COX-2, VEGF, and EGFR were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 19.0 software (IBM Inc., Chicago, IL, USA).

Results: In the present study, high expression of COX-2, EGFR, and VEGF was found in 64.3%, 62.1%, and 65.0%, respectively. Results showed that COX-2 overexpression was significantly correlated with degree of differentiation (P = 0.000), and lymph node metastasis (negative/positive, P = 0.002). EGFR and VEGF overexpression was significantly correlated with a differentiated degree, T stage, N stage, and tumor, node, metastases stage.

Conclusion: High expression of COX-2, EGFR, and VEGF is an unfavorable prognostic factor in ESCC, and could be used as a poor prognosis indicator for the ESCC patients. Targeting therapy to these three targets should be considered to the combined treatment in ESCC.