Clinical Significance of Tumor Angiogenesis in Gastric Carcinoma

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The aim of present study is to define the relationship of microvessel density to clinicopathologic data, the recurrence rate and the overall survival in patients with gastric carcinomas. METHODS: Sixty-two patients with gastric carcinomas who underwent a gastrectomy at Yeungnam University Hospital during one year (January to December 1991) were evaluated. Immunohistochemical staining with the factor VIII-related antigen (Dako, USA) was used to assess of angiogenesis. RESULTS: Microvessel counts increased in proportion to lymph-node metastases, perineural invasion, and lymphatic invasion. Histologic type, primary tumor invasion, stage and distant metastasis did not correlate statistically with microvessel counts. The microvessel counts increased with higher pathologic stages, but the difference was not statistically significant. The microvessel counts were significantly higher in the group with LN metastasis than in those without LN metastasis (p or =62), the overall 5-year survival rate was shorter than in those with low microvessel counts (<62), but the difference was not statistically significant. The microvessel counts were higher in the group with recurrence than in those without recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: On the basis of these results, microvessel count may be a prognostic indicator of gastric carcinomas.