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. 2021 Nov;21(4):675-682.
doi: 10.1007/s10238-021-00705-z. Epub 2021 Mar 25.

Circulating prostaglandin E2: a novel potential prognostic biomarker in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Filippo Pelizzaro  1 , Maria Piera Kitenge  1 , Romilda Cardin  1 , Alberto Ponzoni  2 , Umberto Cillo  3 , Alessandro Vitale  3 , Gianluca Businello  4 , Giada Munari  4 , Matteo Fassan  4 , Fabio Farinati  5
Affiliations

Circulating prostaglandin E2: a novel potential prognostic biomarker in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Filippo Pelizzaro et al. Clin Exp Med. 2021 Nov.

Abstract

We aimed to explore the activation of monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL)/cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)/prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) axis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), evaluating circulating PGE2 as prognostic biomarker in HCC patients. PGE2 levels were measured in blood samples from 24 cirrhotics, and 34 HCC patients were consecutively collected between January 2016 and December 2017. In a subgroup of patients, tissue expression of MAGL mRNA and immunohistochemistry for MAGL and COX-2 were obtained. Despite tumor tissues showing overexpression of MAGL mRNA and higher levels of both MAGL and COX-2 at immunohistochemistry, PGE2 levels were not significantly different in HCC and cirrhotics. HCC patients with circulating PGE2 levels > 14 pg/mL had a significantly shorter overall survival (19.4 vs. 49.9 months; p = 0.03), the finding being confirmed by the multivariate analysis (HR 3.37 [95% CI 1.00-11.60]; p = 0.05). The MAGL/COX-2/PGE2 axis is activated in HCC, and circulating PGE2 proved to be a potential prognostic biomarker.

Keywords: Cyclooxygenase-2; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Monoacylglycerol lipase; Prostaglandin E2; Survival.

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