Aslan Guven, Cimen Sertac, Yorukoglu Kutsal, Tuna Burcin, Sonmez Devrim, Mungan Ugur, Celebi Ilhan
Department of Urology, Dokuz Eylul University School of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey.
Pathol Res Pract. 2005;201(8-9):593-8. doi: 10.1016/j.prp.2005.07.003.
The aim of the study was to investigate immunohistochemically the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in untreated and androgen-deprived patients with prostate cancer. The study included 20 patients with prostate cancer who had undergone transurethral prostatectomy due to infravesical obstruction. All patients had been receiving androgen deprivation therapy for at least 3 months. Transurethral prostatectomy specimens were examined for VEGF expression after androgen deprivation, and the biopsy samples of the same patients were used for the evaluation of VEGF expression before androgen deprivation. VEGF expression was analyzed using immunohistochemistry. Staining patterns determined by the staining scores were compared before and after treatment. The correlation of VEGF expression with PSA, Gleason score, and the percent change in PSA after treatment was also investigated. Eligible biopsy specimens were available in 15 of the 20 patients, allowing for the evaluation of VEGF expression before treatment. All prostate cancer specimens were positive. VEGF was localized mainly in the cytoplasm or on the membrane of carcinoma cells. Staining was strong in 86.7% of patients before androgen deprivation. Heterogeneous staining (strong in 25%, moderate in 35%, and weak in 40%) was observed after treatment. Staining scores were significantly higher in patients before androgen deprivation and showed a significant decrease after androgen deprivation (p = 0.007). Tumor staining correlated with Gleason score. No significant correlation was determined between VEGF expression and pre-treatment PSA and percent change of PSA after treatment. Immunohistochemical results indicate that VEGF expression is downregulated by androgen deprivation therapy. VEGF may be a potential target for therapeutic intervention in prostate cancer.
本研究旨在通过免疫组织化学方法调查未经治疗及雄激素剥夺治疗的前列腺癌患者中血管内皮生长因子（VEGF）的表达情况。该研究纳入了20例因膀胱颈梗阻而接受经尿道前列腺切除术的前列腺癌患者。所有患者均接受了至少3个月的雄激素剥夺治疗。对经尿道前列腺切除术标本在雄激素剥夺治疗后进行VEGF表达检测，并将同一患者的活检样本用于评估雄激素剥夺治疗前的VEGF表达。采用免疫组织化学方法分析VEGF表达。比较治疗前后由染色评分确定的染色模式。还研究了VEGF表达与前列腺特异性抗原（PSA）、Gleason评分以及治疗后PSA变化百分比之间的相关性。20例患者中有15例可获得符合条件的活检标本，从而能够评估治疗前的VEGF表达。所有前列腺癌标本均呈阳性。VEGF主要定位于癌细胞的细胞质或细胞膜上。雄激素剥夺治疗前，86.7%的患者染色较强。治疗后观察到异质性染色（25%为强染色，35%为中度染色，40%为弱染色）。雄激素剥夺治疗前患者的染色评分显著更高，且雄激素剥夺治疗后显著降低（p = 0.007）。肿瘤染色与Gleason评分相关。未确定VEGF表达与治疗前PSA及治疗后PSA变化百分比之间存在显著相关性。免疫组织化学结果表明，雄激素剥夺治疗可下调VEGF表达。VEGF可能是前列腺癌治疗干预的潜在靶点。
