1.Relationship between c-myc gene rearrangement and clinical characteristics, PET-CT imaging features and prognosis of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
Xiaojuan ZHANG ; Jialin LI ; Tong ZHAO ; Ling YUAN
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(3):190-197
Objective:To investigate the correlation between c-myc gene rearrangement and clinical characteristics, 18F-deoxyglucose (FDG) PET-CT imaging features and prognosis of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted. A total of 152 patients with DLBCL confirmed by pathology and underwent 18F-FDG PET-CT examination one week before treatment at Shanxi Province Cancer Hospital from September 2010 to December 2022 were selected, and their clinical data and PET-CT imaging data were collected. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) method was used to detect c-myc gene rearrangement in tumor tissues. The clinical characteristics and PET-CT imaging features between patients with and without c-myc gene rearrangement were compared. Kaplan-Meier method was used to plot the progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) curves of patients, and log-rank test was used for inter group comparison. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used to analyze the factors affecting the prognosis of DLBCL patients. Results:Among the 152 patients, there were 85 males (55.9%) and 67 females (44.1%); the age was (58±15) years old (range: 25-81 years old); 22 cases (14.5%) had c-myc gene rearrangement (including 7 cases of double hit), while the remaining 130 cases (85.5%) did not have c-myc gene rearrangement. There were statistically significant differences in the compositions of patients with different treatment plans, National Comprehensive Cancer Network International Prognostic Index (NCCN-IPI) scores, elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels, positive bcl-6 protein, 18F-FDG PET-CT parameters, metabolic tumor volume (MTV) ≥ 256.04 cm 3, total lesion glycolysis (TLG) ≥ 2 292.34 g between patients with and without c-myc gene rearrangement (all P < 0.05); there were no statistically significant differences in the compositions of patients with different genders, age, tumor involvement range, Ann Arbor staging, immunophenotyping, bone marrow invasion, hepatitis B virus infection, CD10 protein, MUM1 protein, bcl-2 protein, and other 18F-FDG PET-CT imaging parameters (all P > 0.05). The MTV [(727±268) cm 3vs. (314±33) cm 3] and TLG [(8 965±1 868) g vs. (5 341±627) g] of patients with c-myc gene rearrangement were higher than those of patients without c-myc gene rearrangement, and the differences were statistically significant ( t values were 3.07 and 2.19, respectively, and P values were 0.003 and 0.035, respectively); there was no statistically significant difference in the maximum standardized uptake value, average standardized uptake value, tumor maximum standardized uptake value-to-blood maximum standardized uptake value ratio (TBR), and tumor maximum standardized uptake value-to-liver maximum standardized uptake value ratio between patients with and without c-myc gene rearrangement (all P > 0.05). The median follow-up period was 79.5 months (range: 6-153 months). The PFS and OS of patients with c-myc gene rearrangement were worse than those of patients without c-myc gene rearrangement, and the differences were statistically significant (both P < 0.001). Univariate Cox regression analysis showed that Ann Arbor staging, NCCN-IPI score, LDH level, c-myc gene rearrangement, MTV, TLG, and TBR were all associated with poor PFS and OS in DLBCL patients (all P < 0.05); multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the presence of c-myc gene rearrangement was an independent risk factor for PFS (with vs. without, HR = 3.362, 95% CI: 1.825-6.193, P < 0.001) and OS (with vs. without, HR = 4.441, 95% CI: 2.226-8.857, P < 0.001) in DLBCL patients, and NCCN-IPI score (≥ 4 points vs. 0-3 points, HR = 2.439, 95% CI: 1.086-5.495, P = 0.031) and MTV (≥ 256.04 cm 3vs. <256.04 cm 3, HR = 2.439, 95% CI: 1.021-5.814, P = 0.045) were independent risk factors for PFS. Conclusions:DLBCL patients with c-myc gene rearrangement have high tumor burden, late clinical stage and poor prognosis. The rearrangement of c-myc gene may be a predictive factor for disease progression and death in DLBCL patients.
2.Correlation of GPC6 expression level in gliomas with prognosis of patients and effect of GPC6 on proliferation of glioma cells in vitro
Bing YAN ; Kun ZHANG ; Xinyi XU ; Hua LIU
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(3):198-205
Objective:To investigate the correlation between the expression level of glypican-6 (GPC6) in gliomas and the prognosis of patients, as well as the effect of GPC6 on the proliferation of glioma cells in vitro.Methods:The transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) data of GPC6 gene and clinical data of glioma patients were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. A total of 667 patients were enrolled, and the median FPKM value of GPC6 RNA-seq was used to distinguish the low and high expression of GPC6 gene. Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze the overall survival (OS) of GPC6 high and low expression groups in 664 patients with survival data, and log-rank test was used for inter group comparison. The postoperative tumor tissue chips were retrospectively collected from glioma patients who underwent surgery from February 2008 to October 2011, immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to detect the expression of GPC6 protein in 147 samples, and semi-quantitative scoring ≥ 4 points or not was used to distinguish the high and low expression of GPC6 protein based on the proportion of positive cells and staining intensity. The distributions of patients with high and low expression of GPC6 protein in tumor tissues were compared between different clinical pathological features in 147 patients, and Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze the overall survival and disease-free survival (DFS) of patients in the GPC6 protein high and low expression groups; the risk factors that affect poor OS and DFS in patients were analyzed using univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards models. The human glioma U251 cells were infected with lentivirus packaged with GPC6 small interfering RNA and lentivirus packaged with unrelated control sequences, namely ShGPC6 group and ShCtrl group, respectively; green fluorescent cells were counted daily and the cell proliferation fold was calculated for 5 days, and the cell proliferation curve was plotted.Results:In TCGA database, the median FPKM value of 667 glioma patients was 225.66. The median FPKM value of GPC6 gene in 515 World Health Organization (WHO) classification low-grade glioma patients was lower than that in 152 high-grade glioma patients (201.10 vs. 347.92), and the difference was statistically significant ( Z = 5.36, P < 0.001); the OS of patients in GPC6 low expression group (332 cases) was better than that in GPC6 high expression group (332 cases), and the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.001). IHC staining of the tissue chip showed that GPC6 protein was mainly expressed in the cytoplasm and nucleus of glioma cells; high expression of GPC6 protein accounted for 31.3% (46/147) of patients. Among patients who died, relapsed, had high grading, had survival time ≤ 84 months, and had positive epidermal growth factor receptor, the proportion of patients with GPC6 protein high expression was relatively higher, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in the proportions of GPC6 protein high expression patients among patients with different genders, age ≤ 43 years old, Ki-67 positivity, and programmed death receptor ligand 1 positivity (all P > 0.05); compared to the GPC6 low expression group (101 cases), the GPC6 protein high expression group (46 cases) had worse overall survival (median OS time: 57.0 months vs. not reached) and DFS (median DFS time: 33.0 months vs. not reached), and the differences were statistically significant (both P < 0.001). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that high expression of GPC6 protein (high expression vs. low expression, HR = 1.86, 95% CI: 1.04-3.31, P = 0.036) was the independent risk factor for poor OS in glioma patients, but the expression level of GPC6 protein was not the independent influencing factor for DFS (high expression vs. low expression, HR = 1.55, 95% CI: 0.95-2.53, P = 0.077). After infecting U251 cells with recombinant lentivirus for 3 days, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction detection showed that the relative expression level of GPC6 mRNA in the ShGPC6 group was lower than that in the ShCtrl group, and the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.001), the knockdown efficiency of GPC6 reached 79.32%; under the fluorescence microscope, the number and intensity of fluorescence positive U251 cells in the ShCtrl group increased day by day after infection with recombinant lentivirus, while there was no significant change in the ShGPC6 group; starting from the second day, the proliferation rate of U251 cells in the ShCtrl group was higher than that in the ShGPC6 group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.01). Conclusions:High GPC6 expression level may associate with the high risk of death in glioma patients, and high GPC6 expression may promote the proliferation of glioma cells.
3.Efficacy of CEA, CA125, CA199, CA724, and G-17 in diagnosing early gastric cancer
Xiaotong ZHANG ; Lansheng ZHANG ; Yaqi ZHAO ; Wei HAN
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(3):206-210
Objective:To explore the clinical values of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate antigen 125 (CA125), carbohydrate antigen 199 (CA199), carbohydrate antigen 724 (CA724) and gastrin 17 (G-17) detections in the early diagnosis of gastric cancer patients.Methods:A retrospective case-control study was conducted. A total of 120 patients with gastric diseases who were admitted to General Hospital of Xuzhou Mining Group from January 2019 to December 2021 were selected. According to the pathological results of gastroscopy examination, the patients were divided into gastric ulcer group (23 cases), atrophic gastritis group (58 cases) and early gastric cancer group (39 cases). The healthy control group consisted of 30 healthy individuals who underwent physical examination during the same period. All participants were detected for serum levels of CEA, CA125, CA199, CA724, and G-17. The levels of various indicators in each group were compared. Using the pathological results of gastroscopy as the gold standard, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the efficacy of various indicators in distinguishing early gastric cancer from healthy individuals, gastric ulcer and atrophic gastritis.Results:The serum levels of CA125 [ M ( Q1, Q3)] [19.94 (8.29, 22.99) U/ml vs. 6.03 (4.07, 10.48) U/ml, 7.49 (4.96, 12.19) U/ml, 7.54 (6.20, 11.91) U/ml], CA199 [32.09 (15.68, 41.97) U/ml vs. 19.19 (10.01, 30.05) U/ml, 21.00(16.01, 32.71) U/ml, 18.95 (13.90, 32.76) U/ml], CA724 [19.55 (3.91, 26.25) U/ml vs. 4.61 (3.06, 5.24) U/ml, 4.09 (3.37, 5.00) U/ml, 4.88 (3.92, 5.46) U/ml] and G-17 [21.01 (14.67, 24.00) pmol/L vs. 11.80 (10.07, 16.58) pmol/L, 12.74 (11.09, 14.69) pmol/L, 12.08 (8.40, 15.10) pmol/L] in the early gastric cancer group were higher than those in the gastric ulcer group, atrophic gastritis group and healthy control group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). The CEA level in the early gastric cancer group, gastric ulcer group and atrophic gastritis group was all higher than that in the healthy control group [4.38 (3.22, 7.56) ng/ml, 4.51 (3.37, 5.51) ng/ml, 4.49 (4.13, 5.09) ng/ml vs. 3.95 (2.16, 4.44) ng/ml], and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that among all indicators, the area under the curve (AUC) of G-17 for distinguishing early gastric cancer from healthy individuals was the largest [0.825 (95% CI: 0.728-0.922)], the optimal critical value was 18.21 pmol/L, and the specificity was the highest (96.7%); the AUC of CA125 and CA724 was also relatively high, with values of 0.768 (95% CI: 0.653-0.884) and 0.744 (95% CI: 0.622-0.866), respectively, and the optimal critical values were 15.41 and 39.60 U/ml, respectively, with the corresponding sensitivities of 71.8%, which was the highest among several indicators. Among all indicators, CA125 had the largest AUC for distinguishing early gastric cancer from gastric ulcer, which was 0.829 (95% CI: 0.729-0.930), with an optimal critical value of 11.60 U/ml, and the corresponding sensitivity was also the highest (74.4%); the AUC of CEA and CA724 was 0.534 (0.391-0.677) and 0.786 (0.668-0.903), respectively; the optimal critical values were 7.20 ng/ml and 6.34 U/ml, respectively; the corresponding specificity was 100.0%. Among the various indicators, the AUC of G-17 for distinguishing early gastric cancer from atrophic gastritis was the largest [0.813 (95% CI: 0.710-0.915)]. The specificity of each indicator at the optimal critical value was relatively high (≥ 94.8%), among which the optimal critical values of CEA and CA125 were 7.170 ng/ml and 15.55 U/ml, respectively, with the corresponding specificity of 100.0%; the AUC of CA724 was 0.783 (95% CI: 0.671-0.895), the optimal critical value was 6.40 U/ml, and the corresponding sensitivity was 71.8%, which was the highest among the several indicators. Conclusions:CEA, CA125, CA199, CA724, and G-17 have high sensitivity and detection rate in the differential diagnosis of early gastric cancer, gastric ulcer and atrophic gastritis, and have certain clinical values in the diagnosis of early gastric cancer and potential for clinical auxiliary diagnosis.
4.Research status of neoadjuvant therapy for borderline resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
Weiwu CHEN ; Yuehong KONG ; Liyuan ZHANG
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(3):232-236
The malignancy of pancreatic cancer is high. Radical resection is the main treatment method for non-metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Neoadjuvant therapy can improve the surgical resection rate of borderline resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (BR-PDAC) and prolong the survival of patients. In recent years, a large number of studies have been conducted on neoadjuvant therapy for pancreatic cancer at home and abroad, including radiotherapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy and combination therapy. This article mainly reviews the current research status of neoadjuvant therapy for BR-PDAC.
5.Experimental study on the effects of UBE2L3 on the proliferation and apoptosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma UMSCC-1 cells and bioinformatics analysis of the relationship between UBE2L3 and immune cell infiltration
Qi ZHANG ; Lei HUANG ; Hekong WANG ; Jingjing WANG ; Dangli REN
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(4):241-246
Objective:To explore the effects of ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2L3 (UBE2L3) on the proliferation and apoptosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cell line UMSCC-1 in vitro and its potential mechanisms, and to investigate the relationship between UBE2L3 and immune cell infiltration in the HNSCC tumor microenvironment.Methods:The plasmid carrying UBE2L3 gene sequence was transfected into UMSCC-1 cells by using liposome transfection technology (UBE2L3 overexpression group), and UMSCC-1 cells transfected with the empty plasmid was treated as the control group. The quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was used to detect the expression level of UBE2L3 mRNA after transfection, and the transfection efficiency was evaluated. The proliferation levels of the 2 groups of cells were detected by using CCK-8 assay and the cell proliferation rate was calculated. The apoptosis rates of the 2 groups of cells after etoposide induced apoptosis for 24 h were detected by using flow cytometry. The expression levels of Cyclin D1, apoptosis-related proteins bcl-2, and Bax in the 2 groups of cells were detected by using Western blotting. The samples of 504 HNSCC tissues in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) were analyzed by using the single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) database. The median expression level of UBE2L3 was used to distinguish between high and low expression of UBE2L3 transcriptional level. The differences in immune cell enrichment score between high and low expression samples were compared, and the relationship between UBE2L3 expression level and immune cell number was analyzed.Results:qPCR results showed that the relative expression level of UBE2L3 mRNA in UMSCC-1 cells carrying UBE2L3 gene sequence plasmid was higher than that in UMSCC-1 cells transfected with the empty plasmid (9.32±1.15 vs. 1.00±0.02), and the difference was statistically significant ( t = 7.23, P < 0.001), indicating successful transfection. The CCK-8 assay showed that the cell proliferation rate of UMSCC-1 cells in the UBE2L3 overexpression group for 24 h and 48 h of culture was higher than that in the control group [24 h: (184.0±7.9)% vs. (100.0±5.6)%; 48 h: (165.5±5.3)% vs. (100.0±5.3)%], and the differences were statistically significant (both P < 0.001). Flow cytometry showed that the apoptosis rate of UMSCC-1 cells in the UBE2L3 overexpression group was lower than that in the control group [(9.9±1.3)% vs. (15.6±1.3)%], and the difference was statistically significant ( t = 2.78, P = 0.005). Western blotting showed that the relative expression levels of Cyclin D1 and bcl-2 proteins in UMSCC-1 cells of the UBE2L3 overexpression group were higher than those in the control group, while the relative expression level of Bax protein was lower than that in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). The ssGSEA analysis showed that the enrichment scores of B cells, CD8 + T cells, neutrophils, T cells, T helper 17 (Th17) cells, and regulatory T cells (Treg) in 252 HNSCC tissues samples with low UBE2L3 transcriptional expression level were higher than in 252 samples with high UBE2L3 transcriptional expression level in the TCGA database, while the enrichment scores of natural killer (NK) cells and T helper 2 (Th2) cells in patients with low UBE2L3 expression were lower than those in those with high UBE2L3 expression, and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). Correlation analysis showed that the expression level of UBE2L3 in HNSCC tissues was positively correlated with the number of Th2 cells ( R = 0.182) and NK cells ( R = 0.172), and negatively correlated with the number of Treg cells ( R = -0.095), dendritic cells ( R = -0.099), Th17 cells ( R = -0.129), CD8 + T cells ( R = -0.146), mast cells ( R = -0.161), T cells ( R = -0.171), and B cells ( R = -0.188), and the differences were statistically significant (all P > 0.05). Conclusions:UBE2L3 can promote the proliferation and inhibit the apoptosis of HNSCC cells probably by regulating the cell cycle and apoptosis signaling pathways through Cyclin D1, bcl-2, and Bax. UBE2L3 may be associated with immune cell infiltration in the HNSCC microenvironment.
6.Correlation of DOK3 expression level in Porphyromonas gingivalis-positive oral squamous cell carcinoma tissues and TAM infiltration with the clinical prognosis of patients
Zhongcheng GONG ; Muqiu LI ; Chenxi LI ; Wei WEI ; Cheng CHEN ; Bing WANG ; Wei GUO ; Guoxin REN
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(4):247-254
Objective:To explore the expression level of Porphyromonas gingivalis, downstream of tyrosine kinase 3 (DOK3) and tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) in the tumor immunomicroenvironment of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and the correlation with clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of patients.Methods:A retrospective case-control study was conducted. The clinical data of 200 OSCC patients with Porphyromonas gingivalis-positive confirmed by 16S rDNA sequencing technology in the First Affiliated Hospital, Xinjiang Medical University between June 2008 and June 2020 were collected. The tumor tissues and the corresponding adjacent normal mucosal tissues of 6 OSCC patients (including 3 cases with Porphyromonas gingivalis -positive and 3 cases with Porphyromonas gingivalis-negative) were selected for high-throughput sequencing to screen differentially co-expressed genes. Immunohistochemistry method was used to detect the expressions of Porphyromonas gingivalis, DOK3, and CD206 (a TAM marker). The median H score of OSCC tissues was used as the threshold to categorize the expression level of Porphyromonas gingivalis, DOK3 and CD206 into low-expression (H score < threshold) and high-expression (H score ≥ threshold) groups. The overall survival (OS) analysis was conducted by using the Kaplan-Meier method, and the log-rank test was employed.Results:The high-throughput sequencing results revealed that DOK3 is a differentially co-expressed gene among normal oral mucosa, Porphyromonas gingivalis-positive, and Porphyromonas gingivalis-negative OSCC. In 200 patients with Porphyromonas gingivalis-positive OSCC, 139 exhibited high expression of Porphyromonas gingivalis (H score ≥ 7 points), while 61 showed low expression (H score < 7 points). There were statistically significant differences in the expression levels of Porphyromonas gingivalis in patients with different survival status, pathological T stage, pathological N stage, clinical stage, tumor diameter, degree of tumor differentiation and recurrence (all P < 0.05). Among the 139 OSCC patients with high expression of Porphyromonas gingivalis, 92 cases showed high expression of DOK3 (H score ≥ 6 points) and 47 showed low expression (H score < 6 points); 78 cases exhibited high expression of CD206 (H score ≥ 6 points), while 61 showed low expression (H score < 6 points). There were statistically significant differences in the DOK3 expression level in the high expression of Porphyromonas gingivalis OSCC patients with different age, survival status, pathological T stage, pathological N stage, and recurrence (all P < 0.05). There were statistically significant differences in the CD206 expression level in the high expression of Porphyromonas gingivalis OSCC patients with different pathological T stage, clinical stage, and degree of tumor differentiation (all P < 0.05). The expression of Porphyromonas gingivalis was positively correlated with the expressions of DOK3 and CD206 (both P < 0.01). At the last follow-up on April 6th, 2024, the median follow-up time was 45 months (3 to 106 month range). The median OS time of the 200 patients was 2 429 d, and the 3-year OS rate was 63.9%. The OS of OSCC patients with high expressions of Porphyromonas gingivalis, DOK3, and CD206 was worse than that in those with low expressions (all P < 0.05). Conclusions:The high expression levels of Porphyromonas gingivalis, DOK3, and TAM are associated with a poor prognosis of OSCC patients, suggesting their potential as key biomarkers for prognostic evaluation.
7.Correlation of pathologic findings after radical prostatectomy and preoperative 18F-PSMA-1007 PET/CT parameters with the prognosis of patients with prostate cancer
Yunfen BO ; Rongrong TIAN ; Ming ZHAO ; Enwei XU ; Yanfeng XI ; Jie ZHOU ; He LI ; Hailong HAO
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(4):255-261
Objective:To discuss the correlation of pathologic findings after radical prostatectomy and preoperative 18F-PSMA-1007 PET/CT parameters with the prognosis of patients with prostate cancer. Methods:A retrospective case series study was conducted. The clinicopathological data of 48 patients with prostate cancer who underwent radical prostatectomy in Shanxi Province Cancer Hospital between January 2019 and August 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. All patients underwent 18F-PSMA-1007 PET/CT imaging before surgery. The age, the preoperative serum total prostate-specific antigen (tPSA), prostate-specific antigen density (PSAD), prostate volume, tumor diameter, TNM staging, the pathologic data after radical prostatectomy [International Society of Urological Pathology (ISUP) grade, resection margin status, nerve invasion], and preoperative maximum standard uptake value (SUV max) were collected. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the efficacy of PET/CT parameter SUV max in predicting tumor recurrence after prostate cancer surgery. The recurrence-free survival (RFS) was analyzed by using the Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test was performed. Cox proportional risk model was used to analyze the factors influencing RFS after radical prostatectomy. Results:All 48 patients were acinar adenocarcinoma. The median level of the patients' serum tPSA was 19.16 (10.50, 30.99) ng/ml; the median prostate volume was 36.20 (31.83, 45.48) ml; the median tumor diameter was 2.80 (1.60, 4.00) cm; the median PSAD was 0.48 (0.31,1.02) ng·ml -1·cm -3. The primary SUV max of prostate cancer was 13.61 (8.10, 20.20) . Of the 48 patients, 1 case died of heart disease and 1 case died of COVID-19 within 3 to 6 months after surgery, and the rest 46 patients were analyzed for prognosis. Among 46 cases, 26 were in the ISUP low-grade group and 20 were in the high-grade group; 17 were positive and 29 were negative for nerve invasion; 7 were positive and 39 were negative for margin status. The median follow-up time was 18.5 (8-64) months. There were 30 recurrence-free patients and 16 recurrent patients by the follow-up in April 2024. The median RFS time was 15 months; and there were statistically significant differences in RSF among the ISUP high-grade and low-grade groups, preoperative SUV max ≥ 16.77 and < 16.77 groups, positive and negative resection margin groups (all P < 0.01). SUV max was positively correlated with ISUP pathological grade and tPSA level ( r value was 0.634, 0.584, respectively; both P < 0.01). The differences in preoperative serum tPSA level, PSAD, tumor diameter, and SUV max were statistically significant between the ISUP low-grade group and the high-grade group (all P < 0.01); the differences in preoperative serum tPSA, PSAD, and tumor diameter were statistically significant between the nerve invasion positive group and nerve invasion negative group (all P < 0.01); the differences in preoperative serum tPSA, PSAD, tumor diameter, and SUV max between patients with positive resection margins or not were not statistically significant (all P > 0.05). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the tumor resection margin status (negativity vs. positivity: HR = 7.82,95% CI: 1.97-31.07, P < 0.01), ISUP pathological grade (low grade vs. high grade: HR = 4.34,95% CI:1.21-15.62, P < 0.05), and the preoperative SUV max (<16.77 vs. ≥ 16.77: HR = 4.18, 95% CI:1.36-12.85 , P < 0.05) were independent influencing factors for RFS in patients with prostate cancer after radical prostatectomy. Conclusions:Pathological grading after radical prostatectomy and the preoperative 18F-PSMA-1007 PET/CT parameters are associated with the prognosis of patients with prostate cancer.
8.Expression of ZNF711 gene in ovarian cancer and its prognostic value
Li ZHANG ; Yixuan WANG ; Shaohua ZHANG ; Zanhong WANG
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(3):211-217
Objective:To investigate the expression of ZNF711 in ovarian cancer and its relationship with prognosis and its possible role.Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted. The GEPIA database (data updated in October 2020) was used to analyze the expression of ZNF711 mRNA in 426 ovarian cancer samples and 88 normal ovarian tissue samples; 424 ovarian cancer patients were screened from the GEPIA database, and 373 ovarian cancer patients were screened from the Kaplan-Meier Plotter database. The patients were grouped according to the median relative expression levels of ZNF711 mRNA in ovarian cancer samples from the two databases, and the overall survival of the two groups in the same database was compared. The cBioPortal database (data updated in September 2023) was used to screen for the top 30 genes co-expressed with ZNF711 in ovarian cancer tissues from 489 ovarian serous cystadenoma samples in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database; these 30 co-expressed genes were imported into the David database (data updated in October 2023) for Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses. The correlation between ZNF711 expression and 6 types of immune cell infiltration in ovarian cancer was analyzed based on the TIMER database gene module. The ovarian cancer tissues from 178 ovarian cancer patients who underwent surgical treatment at Shanxi Bethune Hospital from January 2012 to December 2017, as well as the normal ovarian tissues from 53 patients who underwent total hysterectomy and bilateral adnexectomy for uterine fibroids during the same period were collected. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of ZNF711 protein in ovarian tissues. The immunohistochemical score was calculated by multiplying the positive cell ratio score and the staining intensity score, ranging from 0 to 12 points, and low or high expression of ZNF711 protein was determined by whether it was ≤ 8 points. The overall survival of patients with high and low expression of ZNF711 protein, as well as the distribution of patients with high and low expression of ZNF711 protein in different clinicopathological stratifications were compared; univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used to analyze the influencing factors of overall survival in ovarian cancer patients.Results:Among 426 ovarian cancer tissue samples and 88 normal ovarian tissue samples in the GEPIA database, the relative expression level of ZNF711 mRNA in ovarian cancer tissues was lower than that in normal ovarian tissues, and the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.05). The median relative expression levels of ZNF711 mRNA in ovarian cancer tissues were 8.46 and 8.57 in the GEPIA database and Kaplan-Meier Plotter database, respectively. The overall survival of the ZNF711 high expression group (212 cases) was better than that of the ZNF711 low expression group (212 cases) in the GEPIA database ( P = 0.010), and the overall survival of the ZNF711 high expression group (242 cases) was better than that of the ZNF711 low expression group (131 cases) in the Kaplan-Meier Plotter database ( P = 0.002). GO enrichment analysis of the top 30 ZNF711 co-expressed genes screened from ovarian cancer tissues in the cBioPortal database showed that these genes were mainly enriched in biological processes such as DNA-templated regulation of transcription, synapse assembly, regulation of transcription from RNA polymerase Ⅱ promoter, cell adhesion of calcium channels, etc. The involved cellular compositions were mainly enriched in the nucleus, ribonucleoprotein complex, etc. The involved molecular functions were mainly enriched in RNA polymerase Ⅱ core promoter proximal region sequence-specific DNA binding, protein binding, mRNA 3'UTR AU-rich region binding, etc. KEGG pathway analysis showed that the ZNF711 co-expressed genes were mainly enriched in processes such as herpes simplex virus type Ⅰ infection, osteoclast differentiation, antigen processing and presentation, Fc γ R-mediated phagocytosis, etc. Analysis using TIMER database found that the expression level of ZNF711 was negatively correlated with B cells, CD8 + T cells, neutrophils, and dendritic cells (all P < 0.05), but it was not correlated with CD4 + T cells or macrophages (both P > 0.05). The immunohistochemistry results of clinical specimens showed that the immunohistochemical scores of ZNF711 in 178 cases of ovarian cancer tissue and 53 cases of normal ovarian tissue were (3.0±1.6) points and (6.9±1.8) points, respectively, and the difference was statistically significant ( t = 14.42, P < 0.001); the overall survival of the ZNF711 low expression group (63 cases) was worse than that of the ZNF711 high expression group (115 cases) ( P = 0.008); there were statistically significant differences in the distribution of high and low expression of ZNF711 protein among ovarian cancer patients of different ages, International Federation of Obstetrics and Gynecology staging, R0 resection, differentiation degree, and ascites (all P = 0.001). The results of multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that non-R0 resection (non-R0 resection vs. R0 resection, HR = 15.862,95% CI: 4.440-56.661) and low expression of ZNF711 protein (high expression vs. low expression, HR = 0.421, 95% CI: 0.089-1.987) were independent risk factors for poor overall survival in ovarian cancer patients (both P < 0.05). Conclusions:ZNF711 is lowly expressed in ovarian cancer and is associated with poor prognosis of patients. It may be an important molecule involved in the progression of ovarian cancer.
9.Cytopathological analysis of 522 cases of neoplastic serous effusion
Xiuli GUO ; Lixia WANG ; Jing YANG ; Jing LU
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(3):218-222
Objective:To explore the morphological characteristics of tumor cells and the key diagnostic points of immunocytochemistry in neoplastic serous effusions.Methods:A retrospective case series study was conducted. A total of 522 samples which were ultimately diagnosed as neoplastic serous effusions by immunocytochemistry were collected in Shanxi Province Cancer Hospital from January 2019 to December 2023. The microscopic morphological characteristics of tumor cells in the samples were analyzed, and the diagnostic points of immunocytochemistry and the differential diagnostic points between rare tumors and adenocarcinoma were summarized.Results:Among the 522 samples of neoplastic serous effusion, there were 305 cases of pleural effusion, 178 cases of abdominal effusion, and 39 cases of pericardial effusion. Immunocytochemical diagnosis revealed 380 cases of adenocarcinoma [198 cases (52.1%) of pleural effusion, 155 cases (40.8%) of peritoneal effusion, and 27 cases (7.1%) of pericardial effusion], 55 cases of small cell carcinoma [47 cases (85.5%) of pleural effusion, 1 case (1.8%) of peritoneal effusion, and 7 cases (12.7%) of pericardial effusion], 23 cases of squamous cell carcinoma [18 cases (78.3%) of pleural effusion, 4 cases (17.4%) of peritoneal effusion, and 1 case (4.3%) of pericardial effusion], 5 cases of large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (4 cases of pleural effusion and 1 case of pericardial effusion), and 31 cases of lymphoma [21 cases (67.7%) of pleural effusion, 7 cases (22.6%) of peritoneal effusion, and 3 cases (9.7%) of pericardial effusion], 20 cases of malignant mesothelioma [17 cases (85.0%) of pleural effusion and 3 cases (15.0%) of peritoneal effusion], 6 cases of ovarian borderline tumors (all of which were peritoneal effusions), and 2 cases of yolk sac tumors (both of which were peritoneal effusions). Under the microscope, the morphological characteristics of tumor cells in squamous cell carcinoma, large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma, lymphoma, malignant mesothelioma, ovarian borderline tumor, and yolk sac tumor were similar to those of adenocarcinoma cells, making them prone to misdiagnosis as adenocarcinoma. Immunocytochemical examination was necessary for the clear diagnosis.Conclusions:Adenocarcinoma accounts for the vast majority of neoplastic serous effusions, while the cell morphologies of other rare tumors overlap with adenocarcinoma. Careful observation and combination with clinical data and immunocytochemical examination results of patients are necessary for making the correct diagnosis.
10.Progress of retroperitoneal liposarcoma
Cancer Research and Clinic 2025;37(3):236-240
The growth of retroperitoneal liposarcoma is occult, and generally there are no obvious clinical symptoms and signs in the early stage. The clinical and pathological features of primary retroperitoneal liposarcoma are not obvious, which lead to the difficulty of early diagnosis, low surgical resection rate and high postoperative recurrence rate. The effect of radiotherapy and chemotherapy on retroperitoneal liposarcoma is still controversial. In recent years, the researches of genomics and immunohistochemistry have gradually increased, and the related targeted therapies derived from these researches have also shown some preferable results, which provide new ideas for the diagnosis and treatment of retroperitoneal liposarcoma.

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