Abstract:

Objective　 To investigate the changes of the expression levels of serum CD44v6 and integrin beta 1 in patients with pancreatic cancer before and after cryosurgery and the correlation between the expression levels and prognosis. Methods　 Cryosurgery was conducted in 44 patients with pancreatic cancer. Serum samples were collected from the patients before and after cryosurgery and 20 healthy subjects (control group). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect the expression levels of serum CD44v6 and integrin beta 1. Results　 Compared with the control group,the expression levels of CD44v6 and integrin beta 1 in patients before and after cryosurgery for 10 d were higher (P<0.05). No statistical significance was found between the patients after cryosurgery for 1 month and the control group (P>0.05). The CD44v6 and integrin beta 1 expression levels decreased gradually after cryosurgery. The expression levels of CD44v6 and integrin beta 1 in patients after cryosurgery for 1 month were significantly lower than those in patients before cryosurgery (P<0.05). Both CD44v6 and integrin beta 1 expression levels were significantly correlated with tumor size,tumor differentiation,clinical stage,lymph node metastasis and liver metastasis (P<0.05),while they were not correlated with sex, age and tumor location (P>0.05). The median survival times of patients with low CD44v6 and integrin beta 1 expressions were 14.5 months and 14.2 months,while those of patients with high CD44v6 and intergrin beta 1 expressions were only 9.5 months and 9.8 months. There were statistical significances (P<0.05). Conclusions　 Serum CD44v6 and integrin beta 1 expression levels are closely correlated to the development,invasion,metastasis and prognosis of pancreatic cancer.

Key words: CD44v6, Integrin beta 1, Pancreatic cancer, Prognosis, Cryosurgery