Serum proteoglycans as prognostic biomarkers of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with alcoholic cirrhosis.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Proteoglycans are involved in neoangiogenesis and transduction of oncogenic signals, two hallmarks of carcinogenesis.

METHODS:

This study sought to assess the prognostic value of serum levels of three proteoglycans (endocan, syndecan-1, and glypican-3) and VEGF in 295 patients with alcoholic cirrhosis: 170 without hepatocellular carcinoma, 58 with early hepatocellular carcinoma, and 67 with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma at inclusion. We analyzed the association between proteoglycan levels and prognosis using Kaplan-Meier and Cox methods.

RESULTS:

Serum levels of the three proteoglycans and VEGF were increased in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma compared with those without hepatocellular carcinoma or with early hepatocellular carcinoma. In multivariate analysis, high levels of serum endocan (>5 ng/mL) were independently associated with death [HR, 2.84; 95% confidence interval (CI,) 1.18-6.84; P = 0.02], but not with hepatocellular carcinoma occurrence, in patients without hepatocellular carcinoma at baseline. High serum endocan (>5 ng/mL) and syndecan-1 (>50 ng/mL) levels were significantly associated with greater risk of tumor recurrence (P = 0.025) in patients with early hepatocellular carcinoma treated by radiofrequency ablation. In patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, high serum levels of endocan (P = 0.004) and syndecan-1 (P = 0.006) were significantly associated with less favorable overall survival. However, only a high level of serum syndecan-1 (>50 ng/mL) was independently associated with greater risk of death (HR, 6.21 95% CI, 1.90-20.30; P = 0.0025).

CONCLUSION:

Serum endocan and syndecan-1 are easily assessable prognostic serum biomarkers of overall survival in alcoholic cirrhosis with and without hepatocellular carcinoma.

IMPACT:

These new biomarkers will be useful to manage patients with hepatocellular carcinoma developed on alcoholic cirrhosis.

• Authors: Jean-Charles Nault, Erwan Guyot, Christelle Laguillier, Sylvie Chevret, Nathalie Ganne-Carrie, Gisèle N'Kontchou, Michel Beaugrand, Olivier Seror, Jean-Claude Trinchet, Jessica Coelho, Philippe Lasalle, Nathalie Charnaux, Maryse Delehedde, Angela Sutton, Pierre Nahon
• Journal: Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev) Vol. 22 Issue 8 Pg. 1343-52 (Aug 2013) ISSN: 1538-7755 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 23780836 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: ©2013 AACR

Chemical References

• Biomarkers, Tumor
• Proteoglycans

Topics

• Aged
• Biomarkers, Tumor (blood)
• Carcinoma, Hepatocellular (blood, complications, pathology)
• Female
• Humans
• Liver Cirrhosis, Alcoholic (blood, complications)
• Liver Neoplasms (blood, complications, pathology)
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Prognosis
• Prospective Studies
• Proteoglycans (blood)
• Retrospective Studies