Impact of VEGF and VEGF receptor 1 (FLT1) expression on the prognosis of stage III esophageal cancer patients after radiochemotherapy

Dirk Rades*, Helmut Golke, Steven E. Schild, Ergin Kilic

*Corresponding author for this work
17 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background and Purpose: High expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is negatively associated with clinical outcome. The prognostic value of VEGF receptor 1 (FLT1) is unclear. This retrospective study investigated the impact of tumor expression of VEGF and FLT1 on outcome in 68 stage III esophageal cancer patients. Material and Methods: The impact of tumor VEGF and FLT expression (≤ 10% vs. > 10%) and five additional potential prognostic factors on overall survival (OS) and locoregional control (LC) was retrospectively evaluated. These factors included T-stage (T3 vs. T4), N-stage (N0 vs. N1), treatment (radiochemotherapy plus resection vs. radiochemotherapy alone), erythropoietin (ERYPO® 10000, Janssen-Cilag, Neuss, Germany) administration during radiotherapy, and majority of hemoglobin levels during radiotherapy (< 12 vs. ≥ 12 g/dl). Subgroup analyses were performed for patients receiving resection (R0 vs. R1/2 resection). The factors found to be significant on univariate analyses (Kaplan-Meier method, log-rank test) were included in multivariate analyses performed with the Cox proportional hazard model. Results: On univariate analysis, improved OS was associated with T3 stage (p = 0.011), surgery (p = 0.019), and hemoglobin ≥ 12 g/dl (p < 0.001). Improved LC was associated with T3 stage (p = 0.025), hemoglobin ≥ 12 g/dl (p < 0.001), and VEGF negativity (p = 0.045). On multivariate analyses, only hemoglobin maintained significance. In patients having surgery, R0 resection was significantly better than R1/2 resection for OS (p < 0.001) and LC (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Preradiotherapy tumor VEGF expression appears negatively correlated with outcomes, whereas FLT1 expression appears to have no significant impact on OS and LC.

Original languageEnglish
JournalStrahlentherapie und Onkologie
Volume184
Issue number8
Pages (from-to)416-420
Number of pages5
ISSN0179-7158
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 08.2008

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