The upregulated expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in surgically treated patients with recurrent/radioresistant cervical cancer of the uterus

Yoshida,Kosuke; Suzuki,Shiro; Sakata,Jun; Utsumi,Fumi; Niimi,Kaoru; Yoshikawa,Nobuhisa; Nishino,Kimihiro; Shibata,Kiyosumi; Kikkawa,Fumitaka; Kajiyama,Hiroaki

doi:10.3892/ol.2018.8610

The upregulated expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in surgically treated patients with recurrent/radioresistant cervical cancer of the uterus

Authors:
- Kosuke Yoshida
- Shiro Suzuki
- Jun Sakata
- Fumi Utsumi
- Kaoru Niimi
- Nobuhisa Yoshikawa
- Kimihiro Nishino
- Kiyosumi Shibata
- Fumitaka Kikkawa
- Hiroaki Kajiyama
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Affiliations: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya University, Showa‑ku, Nagoya 466‑8550, Japan, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Banbuntane Hotokukai Hospital, Nakagawa‑ku, Nagoya 454‑8509, Japan
Published online on: May 2, 2018 https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2018.8610
Pages: 515-521

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Abstract

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors have been utilized for the treatment against advanced or recurrent cervical carcinoma as a novel therapeutic modality. However, the expression level of VEGF in post‑radiotherapy relapsed/persistent cervical cancer remains to be elucidated. The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression of VEGF and associated molecules using tumor samples from patients with post‑radiotherapy relapsed/persistent cervical cancer. From a database of 826 patients who were treated at our institution between 2003 and 2015, eight patients with post‑radiotherapy relapsed/persistent cervical cancer were identified, and 20 patients who underwent initial surgery alone were used as a control. Using samples from these patients, the expression levels of VEGF‑A, VEGF receptor‑1 (VEGFR‑1) and hypoxia inducible factor‑1α (HIF‑1α) were immunohistochemically categorized as negative or weakly, moderately, or strongly positive according to the size of the staining area, and intensity. In carcinoma cells, the expression levels of VEGF‑A, VEGFR‑1 and HIF‑1α were significantly higher in post‑radiotherapy relapsed/persistent cervical cancer compared with control patients (P=0.0003, 0.0003, and 0.0001, respectively). In stroma cells, similar tendencies with statistical significance were observed (P=0.0014 and P<0.0001, respectively). In addition, the expression levels of VEGF‑A and VEGFR‑1 in carcinoma cells were significantly correlated with each other (P<0.0001). A significantly higher expression of VEGF was identified in post‑radiotherapy relapsed/persistent cervical cancer compared with typical specimens from cervical cancer. The findings provide a novel insight into the clinical treatment for recurrent/persistent cervical cancer using a VEGF antagonist.

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