Dkk3 has tumor suppressor properties in various cancers. Recently, we reported that the mRNA level of Dkk3 gene was down-regulated by epigenetic alteration in cervical cancer and that forced expression of Dkk3 resulted in the growth inhibition of cervical cancer cells. The aim of this study was to assess the expression of Dkk3 protein in cervical cancer tissue and determine potential clinical correlations. Immunohistochemical analysis was performed on 94 cervical cancer tissues. Clinical and pathological parameters were obtained from medical record. Survival data were estimated using Kaplan-Meier estimates and compared with log-rank test where indicated. Out of 94 tissue samples, negative, weak, moderate and high expression of Dkk3 were observed in 29 (30.9%), 31 (33.0%), 18 (19.1%) and 16 (17.0%) tissue samples. Dkk3 expression was negatively correlated with FIGO clinical stage (p<0.03, Mann-Whitney test). The 5-year disease free survival of patients with a negative or weak expression was significantly lower than that of those with moderate or high expression (70.6% versus 86.3%, respectively, p=0.04, log-rank test). The result of this study showed that down-regulation of Dkk3 is associated with advanced FIGO clinical stage and poor survival outcome of cervical cancer.
Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 102nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2011 Apr 2-6; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2011;71(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3202. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2011-3202
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