Expression of S100A11 is a Prognostic Factor for Disease-free Survival and Overall Survival in Patients With High-grade Serous Ovarian Cancer.

S100A11 is a calcium-binding protein implicated in a variety of biological functions and is overexpressed in many human cancers. However, S100A11 expression level in ovarian cancer has not been well characterized. High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) is the most common and lethal type of ovarian cancer. The aim of the present study was to investigate S100A11 expression and its clinical significance in HGSC. S100A11 expression was evaluated by Western blot in 45 snap-frozen specimens (15 normal ovarian epithelia, 15 normal fallopian tube epithelia, and 15 HGSCs) and by immunohistochemistry in 211 paraffin-embedded specimens (40 normal fallopian tube epithelia, 54 normal ovarian epithelia, and 117 HGSCs). S100A11 expression was extremely elevated in HGSC compared with normal epithelial tissues and was positively correlated with FIGO stage (P=0.014), ascitic fluid volume (P=0.009), and residual disease (P=0.004) of HGSC patients. Higher S100A11 expression was associated with poorer disease-free (P=0.004) and overall (P=0.006) survival, whereas multivariate analysis revealed S100A11 to be an independent prognostic factor for disease-free (P=0.019) and overall (P=0.027) survival in patients with HGSC. In conclusion, S100A11 overexpression correlates with an aggressive malignant phenotype and may constitute a novel prognostic factor for HGSC.