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Background: Previous studies have shown that serum VEGF levels were elevated in patients with active systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), especially in those with lupus nephritis (LN). In this case control study, we aimed to compare serum levels of VEGF in SLE patients between LN, non-LN and healthy participants to determine the association between serum VEGF levels and the activity and histological classes of lupus nephritis. Methods: Blood samples were obtained from 92 SLE patients (46 LN and 46 non-LN) and 26 controls. Data were collected from medical records. Serum VEGF assays were performed by specific, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits (ELISA). Laboratory investigations included urinalysis, urine protein–creatinine ratio, serum creatinine, albumin and VEGF levels. Blood pressure, renal biopsy result and treatment were recorded. LN activity was evaluated using the renal subscale of the British Isles Lupus Assessment Group (rBILAG, 2004). The rBILAG measures blood pressure (diastolic and systolic), urine protein, serum creatinine, calculated glomerular filtration rate (GFR), presence of active urinary sediments and histological evidence of active nephritis. Results: Serum VEGF was elevated in SLE patients with LN compared with the non-LN group and healthy controls. The levels found were significantly higher in the sera of patients with active nephritis compared to those with quiescent nephritis (P = 0.024). The study did not find a statistically significant relationship between serum VEGF levels and histological classes of LN. Conclusion: There was no significant difference of serum VEGF level between LN and non-LN SLE groups and between the non-LN group and healthy controls. However, there were increased levels of serum VEGF in the LN group, especially in patients with active nephritis as compared to quiescent nephritis group. This reflects the role of VEGF in the pathogenesis of lupus nephritis, however the clinical potential of this biomarker needs further study.
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Objective To investigate the relationship between serum-VEGF(sVEGF)and clinical features in children and adolescent patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma(NHL) and acute lymphoblagtic leukemia(ALL).Methods The sVEGF in 101 of pretreated NHL and ALL patients were detected by enzymelinked inununosorbent assay(ELISA).The sVEGF prior and post-treatment were compared in 61 patients who achieved complete remission(CR).Results The median sVEGF was 567.70 ng/L in 81 prior-treated NHL patients.It was significantly higher than that in normal controls(P＜0.001).The median sVEGF wag 253.90 ng/L in 49 patients with CR,which was significantly different compared to pretherapeutic level(P＜0.001),whereag no statistical difference was observed compared to the normal controls. No relationships were found between sVEGF and clinical indexes such as clinical stage,Bsymptoms,gender,performance status(PS)score,bulk and serum lactate dehydrogenage (LDH)et al in untreated NHL patients.The median sVEGF was 198.60 ng/L in 20 untreated ALL patients.which wag no statistically different in comparison with that of normal controls.And the median sVEGF wag 181.73 ng/L in 12 of the CR ALL patients.which wag not statistically different in comparison with that in prior-treatment group or normal controls.Conclusion This study showed that the sVEGF in untreated children and adoleseent patients with NHL were higher than that of normal controls.The high sVEGF dmpped after achieving CR.There was no relationship between the level of sVEGF and clinical characteristics in the NHL patients.The sVEGF level in untreated ALL patients wag not difierent compared to that of the normal controls.and there was no change for sVEGF after chemotherapy in ALL patients.
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Objective To explore the clinical significance of serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) level in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients. Methods Serum VEGF level of 55 nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients were measured by sandwich enzyme?- linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). 40 normal healthy volunteers served as control. Results Serum VEGF level of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients was significantly higher than that of control group (P =0.000); Serum VEGF level was significantly higher in advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma stage (stage Ⅲ ~Ⅳ) than that in early stage(stageⅠ ~Ⅱ) (P =0.003); Serum VEGF level with nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with lymphnode metastasis was significantly higher than that of patients without lymphnode metastasis. There was no significant relationship compared serum VEGF level in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patient's gender, age and pathological types. Conclusions Serum VEGF can be used as a marker of nasopharyngeal carcinoma for diagnosis and monitoring the progress and the prognosis of the disease.
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Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical significance of serum vascular endothelial growth factor(S-VEGF)in patients of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma with the end-point of progress-free survival rate.Methods Sera from 89 patients with esophageal squamous carcinoma,who presented and treated with concurrent chemoradiotherapy or surgical resection in Cancer Center d Sun Yat-Sen University from December 2002 to May 2004,were sampled at the time of pre-treatment.30 cases of health individuals without any evidence of disease were selected as control group.For patients with surgical resection were performed with esophagectomy and extended lymphadenectomy.For patients with concurrent chemoradiotherapy comprised of cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil.The radiotherapy dose of 2 Gy per day was initiated on Day 1 of chemotherapy and continued daily for 5 days per week for 6 weeks,for a total close of 60 Gy.Two courses of chemotherapy were given during radiotherapy at 6-week intervals.The serum vascular endothelial growth factor(S- VEGF)levels were measured with a solid phase enzyme Human VEGF Immunoassay ELISA kit.The end point of this study was progress-free survival,and time was calculated from the date of diagnosis to date of relapse or last follow evaluation.Results S-VEGF level of patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma was significantly higher than that of heahhy controls(475.93?44.76 pg/ml vs.294.20?23.40 pg/ml;P=0.020).S-VEGF levels in patients with StageⅢand StageⅣdisease were significantly higher than those in patients with Stage I and StageⅡdisease.The 1-year progress-free survival rate d high S-VEGF group(≥475 pg/ml)was significantly lower than that of the low S-VEGF group(＜475 pg/ml)(24% vs.66%;P=0.0004).The 1-year progress-free survival rate of the patients with StageⅠand StageⅡdisease was significantly higher than that of patients with StageⅢand StageⅣdisease(71% vs.29%;P=0.0015).The variables were assessed by multivariate analysis using the Cox proportional hazards model,and the results revealed that the clinical stage and the S-VEGF were first and second independent prognosis factor,respectively.Conclusions In the current study,a high S-VEGF was found to be associated with tumor progression,poor treatment response,and poor survival in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus.