OBJECTIVETo detect the hypermethylation status of RASSF1A promoter in serum DNA of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patient and evaluate its correlation with clinicopathological parameters.

METHODSSerum DNA was extracted from the peripheral blood of 75 NSCLC patients and another 35 patients with benign pulmonary disease and 15 healthy donors. The methylation status of RASSF1A promoter was determined using methylation-specific PCR (MSP), and the correlation of methylation profiles with clinicopathological parameters was statistically analyzed.

RESULTSAberrant methylation of RASSF1A was detected in 23 of 75 (30.7%) cancer patients, but in none of patients with benign pulmonary disease or in healthy donors (P <0.001). RASSF1A hypermethylation status was found to be correlated with late stage and poor differentiation (P < 0.05), but not with gender, age or histopathology in NSCLC patients.

CONCLUSIONHypermethylated RASSF1A promoter is frequently found in the serum DNA of non-small cell lung cancer patient, and RASSF1A may become a promising novel biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis prediction in lung cancer.

Adult ; Aged ; Biomarkers, Tumor ; blood ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; blood ; genetics ; pathology ; Case-Control Studies ; DNA Methylation ; DNA, Neoplasm ; blood ; genetics ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; blood ; genetics ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; methods ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; Tumor Suppressor Proteins ; blood ; genetics