The expression of Cx43 protein in non-small cell lung cancer tissues and its clinical significance / 中国肺癌杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>To investigate the expression feature of Cx43 protein in non-small cell lung cancer and its clinical significance.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Paraffin embedded tissues from 65 patients with primary non-small cell lung cancer and 20 adjacent non-cancerous lung tissues were investigated for expression of Cx43 protein by immunohistochemistry (ABC method). The relationship between Cx43 protein expression and clinicopathological characteristics of lung cancer was analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Cx43 protein was positively expressed in 24 out of 65 lung cancer tissues (36.92%), and in all 20 adjacent non-cancerous lung tissues. There was a significant difference in Cx43 expression between stage I-II and stage III-IV groups ( P < 0.05), as well as between moderate-well and poor differentiation groups ( P < 0.01). Primary lung cancer tissues with lymph node metastasis showed lower expression of Cx43 than those without lymph node metastasis ( P < 0.01). The positive rate of Cx43 expression was not related to histological classification ( P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Cx43 expression might play a role in the genesis, development and metastasis of lung cancer. It may be used to judge the biological behavior of lung cancer.</p>