Abstract

Abstract

Background: Transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) receptor signaling is closely associated with the invasion ability of gastric cancer cells. Although Smad signal is a critical integrator of TGFβ receptor signaling transduction systems, not much is known about the role of Smad2 expression in gastric carcinoma. The aim of the current study is to clarify the role of phosphorylated Smad2 (p-Smad2) in gastric adenocarcinomas at advanced stages.

Methods: Immunohistochemical staining with anti-p-Smad2 was performed on paraffin-embedded specimens from 135 patients with advanced gastric adenocarcinomas. We also evaluated the relationship between the expression levels of p-Smad2 and clinicopathologic characteristics of patients with gastric adenocarcinomas.

Results: The p-Smad2 expression level was high in 63 (47%) of 135 gastric carcinomas. The p-Smad2 expression level was significantly higher in diffuse type carcinoma (p = 0.007), tumours with peritoneal metastasis (p = 0.017), and tumours with lymph node metastasis (p = 0.047). The prognosis for p-Smad2-high patients was significantly (p = 0.035, log-rank) poorer than that of p-Smad2-low patients, while a multivariate analysis revealed that p-Smad2 expression was not an independence prognostic factor.

Conclusion: The expression of p-Smad2 is associated with malignant phenotype and poor prognosis in patients with advanced gastric carcinoma.

Details

Title
Phosphorylated Smad2 in Advanced Stage Gastric Carcinoma
Author
Shinto, Osamu; Yashiro, Masakazu; Toyokawa, Takahiro; Nishii, Takafumi; Kaizaki, Ryoji; Matsuzaki, Taro; Noda, Satoru; Kubo, Naoshi; Tanaka, Hiroaki; Doi, Yosuke; Ohira, Masaichi; Muguruma, Kazuya; Sawada, Tetsuji; Hirakawa, Kosei
Pages
652
Publication year
2010
Publication date
2010
Publisher
BioMed Central
e-ISSN
14712407
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
902173208
Copyright
© 2010 Shinto et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.