ABSTRACT
Background and aim of the work: Previous studies verified that Endostatin, matrix metalloproteinase [MMP] -2 and -9, in addition to tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase [TIMP] -1 may play a crucial role in prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer [NSCLC]. In this study we will investigate the changes in the pretreatment serum levels of these factors and to evaluate their clinical implication in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer [NSCLC]
Patients and methods: Pretreatment serum samples were collected from 25 patients and 10 control healthy individuals. The levels of Endostatin, MMP-2, MMP-9, and TIMP-1 were measured using a sandwich enzyme immunoassay kit
Results: The pretreatment serum levels of Endostatin and TIMP1 were significantly elevated and correlated with their stages and survival [P< 0.05], where, the serum level of Endostatin in healthy subjects was 81.20 +/- 23.99 ng/ml and in patients with NSCLC was 354.40 +/- 164.01 ng/ml. The serum level of TIMP1 in healthy subjects was 1.49 +/- 0.29 ng/ml and in patients with NSCLC was 2.96 +/- 0.58 ng/ml. The serum level of MMP2 and 9 were non-significantly decreased in serum of NSCLC patients [P > 0.05], where the serum activity of MMP2 in healthy subjects was 0.14 +/- 0.03 ng/ml and in patients with NSCLC was 0.09 +/- 0.03% and the serum activity of MMP9 in healthy subjects was 0.13 +/- 0.019 ng/ml and in patients with NSCLC was 0.10 +/- 0.03%
Conclusions: Our results indicated that the circulating levels of Endostatin, and TIMP-1 in patients with NSCLC may be valuable future tools for treatment planning and monitoring of treatment, however, these blood tests need to be standardized and validated in large-scale prospective clinical trials