The Expression And Clinical Significance Of C-Met And β-catenin In Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma

【Objective】To analyze the prognostic factors of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. The expression of c-Met and P-catenin were detected. To explored the relationship of the their expression and prognosis of these patients and to analyze their influences on prognosis of patients were purposes of this research. We expect to provide reference indicators for clinical diagnosis,treatment and prognostic in hepatocellular carcinoma.【Method】The clinicopathologic data of 601 cases with hepatocellular carcinoma who had received curative resection in our hospital from January 1,2004 to December 31,2010 were analyzed retrospectively. Surgically resected specimens of 245 cases from January 1,2008 to December 31,2010 were made into tissue microarray. Expression of c-Met and P-catenin proteins were detected by immunohistochemistry. The expression of c-Met in cell membrane, expression of P-catenin proteins in the nucleus and cytoplasm was graded by the standard for evaluation. The score was divided into high and low expression group by median value, and median value was included in the high expression group.The relationship of the two kinds of expression and prognosis were analyzed by SPSS 19.0.【Result】The prognostic analysis of all 601 patients showed that the disease free survival time rate of 1-,3-and 5-year were 51,38and31%, the overall survival rates of 1-,3-and 5-year were 79,62and54%. Multivariate analysis showed that gender (P=0.046), cigarette smoking(P=0.007), serum AFP level(P=0.001), GGT(P=0.002), maximum size of tumors (P=0.009), liver cirrhosis (P=0.025),PVTT (P=0.022), microvascular tumor thrombus (P=0.007), TNM stage (P=0.001) were the independent risk factors for DFS. It also showed that serum AFP levelCP=0.000), ALT(P=0.000), surgical time (P=0.023), tumor differentiation (P=0.021), maximum size of tumors (P=0.000), local necrosis (P=0.000), PVTT (P=0.000), Child-Pugh (P=0.018), TNM stage (P=0.002) were the independent risk factors for OS.Immunohistochemistry technique was applied to detected the expression of c-Met in 245 cases. The expression of c-Met in tumor tissues had a significant correlation with AST, tumor differentiation and number of tumor nodules. Univariate analysis was showed that over expression of c-Met in tumor tissues had shorter OS than those with lower c-Met expression(24.71m vs 35.61m,P=0.037),and their DFS had no differences. Multivariate analysis showed that over expression of c-Met in tumor tissues was the independent risk factors for OS.The cytoplasmic P-catenin expression in tumor tissues had a significant correlation with serum AFP level. Univariate analysis was showed that overexpression of β-catenin in cytoplasm had shorter DFS and OS than those with lower P-catenin protein expression(DFS:7.85m vs 15.85m P=0.048;OS:25.75m vs 38.58m). There is no significant difference in patient’s survival between P-catenin expression and negative expression in negative. Multivariate analysis showed that over expression of P-catenin protein in tumor tissues was the independent risk factors for DFS and OS.【Conclusion】1. Serum AFP level, maximum size of tumors, PVTT, TNM stage are the recurrence and death correlation factors of hepatocellular carcinoma.2. The expression of c-Met in tumor tissues had a significant correlation with AST, tumor differentiation and number of tumor nodules.It was the independent risk factors for OS.3. The expression of β-catenin protein in tumor tissues had a significant correlation with serum AFP level..It was the independent risk factors for DFS and OS.