ABSTRACT
Objective:To investigate the expression level of synaptophysin (Syn), tissue neuronal cell adhesion molecule 56 (CD56) and chromogranin A (CgA) in 92 primary esophageal small cell carcinoma (PESC) and to explore its repationship with clinicopathological features and clinical outcome. Methods:Immunohistochemical studies of CD56, CgA, and Syn were performed in 92 paraffin-embed-ded tissues with clinical-related information obtained from 500,000 esophageal and gastric cardia carcinoma databases established by Henan Key Laboratory for Esophageal Cancer Research of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University in Henan, China. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the correlations of CgA, Syn, and CD56 expression with clinicopathological features. Kaplan-Mei-er survival analysis and Cox proportional hazards regression models were performed for univariate and multivariate survival analyses. Log-rank test was used to compare the difference in survival rates. Results:The CgA-positive expression rate in PESC at lower segment of esophagus (72.2%) was higher than those at the middle and lower segments (41.1%, 10.0%) (P=0.001). The expression level of CD56, CgA, and Syn was not correlated with gender (P=0.262, 0.998, 0.931), age (P=0.250, 0.998, 0.703), tumor invasion (P=0.253, 0.997, 0.061), and lymph node metastasis (P=0.767, 0.998, 0.613). Univariate analysis showed no survival influence in patients with and without lymph node metastasis (P=0.563). Multivariate survival analysis showed that patients with PESC mixed squamous cell car-cinoma (HR=2.58;95%Cl, 1.11-5.98) and higher CgA protein expression (HR=1.87;95%Cl, 1.02-3.43) exhibited a longer survival time than those with pure PESC and without CgA expression. Conclusion:Tissue CgA level was associated with tumor location in PESC. His-tological type and tissue CgA expression were independent important prognostic factors, and lymph node metastasis exerted no influ-ence on survival in PESC.