A six-microRNA signature predicts survival of patients with uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma

Abstract

Uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma (UCEC) is one of the most common female gynecological malignant tumors that threaten women health seriously. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) has been proved to play critical roles in tumor pathogenesis and malignant progression. In this study, we aimed to explore a novel signature of microRNA expression for predicting the overall survival (OS) of patients with UCEC. The genome-wide miRNA expression profiles and relevant clinical characteristics of 348 patients with UCEC were downloaded from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data portal and analyzed comprehensively. A total of 144 miRNAs were confirmed to be expressed differentially in tumor tissues. Among them, 6 miRNAs (hsa-mir-15a.MIMAT0000068, hsa-mir-142.MIMAT0000433, hsa-mir-142.MIMAT0000434, hsa-mir-3170.MIMAT0015045, hsa-mir-1976.MIMAT0009451, and hsa-mir-146a.MIMAT0000449) were validated to be significantly correlated with the OS of patients with UCEC. The risk indictor established by the 6-microRNA signature was proved be an independent prognostic factor (Hazard ratio = 0.391; 95% CI: 0.195-0.783; P = 0.008). In conclusion, we identified miRNAs that were correlated with the occurrence and progression of UCEC and established a 6-microRNA expression signature as a predictor for the OS of patients with UCEC.

Keywords: Biomarker; MicroRNA; Survival; Uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma.