Stromal derived factor-1 (SDF-1) and its receptors CXCR4 and CXCR7 in endometrial cancer patients.

PurposeOne of the most important function of stromal derived factor-1 (SDF-1) and its receptors, is regulating the process of metastasis formation. The aim of our study was to investigate the correlation between SDF-1, CXCR4 and CXCR7 protein levels measured by immunohistochemistry with the clinicopathological features and the survival of endometrial cancer patients.Materials and methods92 patients aged 37-84 (mean 65.1±9.5) were enrolled to our study between January 2000 and December 2007. After the diagnosis of endometrial cancer, all women underwent total abdominal hysterectomy, with bilateral salpingoophorectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection. In all patients clinical stage (according to FIGO classification), histologic grade, myometrial invasion, lymph node and distant metastases were determined.Furthermore, the survival time was assessed. Immunohistochemical analyses of SDF-1, CXCR4 and CXCR7 were performed on archive formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissue sections.ResultsStatistically significant correlations (p0.05) between the proteins expression in the primary tumor cells and the clinicopathological features. Moreover, the Kaplan-Meier analyses demonstrated a stepwise impairment of cancer overall survival (OS) with increasing SDF-1 expression.ConclusionThe important role of SDF-1 as a predictor of negative clinicopathological characteristics of a tumor suggests that the expression of this stromal factor should be included in the panel of accessory pathomorphological tests and could be helpful in establishing a more accurate prognosis in endometrial cancer patients.