Variation and prognostic value of serum plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 before and after chemotherapy in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer.

Aim The purpose of the present study was to explore variation and prognostic significance of serum plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 ( PAI-1) before the first cycle of chemotherapy and after the sixth cycle of chemotherapy in epithelial ovarian cancer ( EOC) patients who had undergone cytoreductive surgery. Material and Methods We retrospectively evaluated the serum PAI-1 level of EOC patients and healthy controls and investigated the correlation between both serum PAI-1 levels of EOC patients we detected and clinicopathological characteristics. Survival rates were analyzed by using the Kaplan- Meier technique and Cox regression model. Results Serum PAI-1 levels of EOC patients before the first cycle of chemotherapy and after the sixth cycle of chemotherapy were significantly higher than those of healthy controls (both P < 0.05). The results of Kaplan- Meier analysis indicated that both serum PAI-1 levels of EOC patients were associated with progression-free survival and overall survival. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed the PAI-1 level before the first cycle of chemotherapy was an independent prognostic marker of progression-free survival (28.4 vs 49.6 months; P = 0.013) and overall survival (41.8 vs 53.8 months; P = 0.043). Conclusions Both serum PAI-1 levels of EOC patients we detected were associated with International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage, residual tumor size and lymph node metastasis. The serum PAI-1 level before the first cycle of chemotherapy is an independent predictor for EOC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]