Glucose Transporter-1 Expression in Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Tongue.
- Author:
Yoon Seok CHOI
1
;
Seok Jin KIM
;
Dae Sik KIM
;
Seh Jong PARK
;
Yong PARK
;
Hye Jin SHIN
;
Kwang Yoon JUNG
;
Seung Kuk BAEK
;
Bong Kyung SHIN
;
Jung Woo CHOI
;
Byung Soo KIM
;
Sang Won SHIN
;
Yeul Hong KIM
;
Jun Suk KIM
Author Information
1. Department of Internal Medicine, Korea University Medical Center, Seoul, Korea. kstwoh@korea.ac.kr
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords:
Tumor hypoxia;
Glucose transporter-1;
Squamous cell carcinoma;
Tongue
- MeSH:
Anoxia;
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell*;
Glucose*;
Humans;
Immunohistochemistry;
Lymph Nodes;
Microvessels;
Multivariate Analysis;
Neoplasm Metastasis;
Phenotype;
Prognosis;
Tongue*
- From:Cancer Research and Treatment
2007;39(3):109-115
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
PURPOSE: Tumor cells are known to express hypoxia-related proteins such as glucose transporter-1 (Glut-1). These hypoxia-induced changes may allow tumor cells to survive under sustained hypoxic microenvironments, and the surviving tumor cell under hypoxia may develop a more aggressive phenotype and so result in a poor prognosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Glut-1 expression was analyzed by immunohistochemistry, and its association with the prognosis was assessed in 60 patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue. RESULTS: The Glut-1 expression was diffuse with a membranous pattern, and the median percentage of Glut-1 positive tumor cells was 60% (range: 0.0~90.0%). A high Glut-1 expression (the percentage of positive tumor cells > or = the median value, 60%) was associated with the location of primary lesion, lymph node metastasis status and disease stage (p<0.05). The expression of Glut-1 was correlated with the Ki-67 expression (r=0.406, p=0.001). Microvessel density, as represented by CD31 staining, was also correlated with the Glut-1 expression although its significance is weak (r=0.267, p=0.039). On the univariate analysis, the group with a high Glut-1 expression showed poorer overall survival than the group with a low Glut-1 expression (p<0.05). However, the Glut-1 expression failed to show any independent prognostic significance on the multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION: The expression of Glut-1 may be useful for predicting the prognosis and determining the treatment strategy for the management of squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue.
