泰国肝细胞癌患者癌症干细胞标志物表达与临床病理特征之间的关联

Association Between Cancer Stem Cell Marker Expression and Clinicopathological Features in Thai Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

作者信息

Chattong Supreecha, Wongsirisin Pattama, Raman Chanaporn, Ngamlert Oraya K

机构信息

Department of Medical Research and Technology Assessment, National Cancer Institute, Thailand, Bangkok, THA.

Department of Anatomical Pathology, National Cancer Institute, Thailand, Bangkok, THA.

出版信息

Cureus. 2025 Aug 10;17(8):e89761. doi: 10.7759/cureus.89761. eCollection 2025 Aug.

Abstract

Introduction Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are believed to play critical roles in tumor initiation, progression, metastasis, and treatment resistance. This study aimed to evaluate the expression of the four most commonly CSCs with relevant to HCC, namely, CD44, CD90, CD133, and epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), in tumor and adjacent noncancerous tissues of Thai HCC patients and to explore their association with clinicopathological features and patient survival. Methods HCC patients undergoing curative hepatic resection at the National Cancer Institute, Thailand, were included. Tumor and matched adjacent noncancerous tissues were collected and analyzed for the expression of CD44, CD90, CD133, and EpCAM using immunohistochemistry (IHC). IHC scores were calculated based on staining intensity and extent. Associations between marker expression and clinicopathological features were assessed, and overall survival was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results All four CSC markers were significantly overexpressed in tumor tissues compared to adjacent normal tissues (P < 0.05). However, no statistically significant associations were found between marker expression and clinicopathological parameters. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed no significant differences in overall survival between high and low expression groups. Nonetheless, patients with low CD44 and CD133 expression tended to have better survival outcomes, although not statistically significant. Conclusion The findings suggest that CD44, CD90, CD133, and EpCAM were enriched in HCC tumor tissues, supporting their role in hepatocarcinogenesis. However, no strong correlations were found with clinical features or survival in this cohort.

摘要

引言

肝细胞癌(HCC)是全球癌症相关死亡的主要原因。癌症干细胞(CSCs)被认为在肿瘤的起始、进展、转移和治疗抵抗中起关键作用。本研究旨在评估泰国HCC患者肿瘤组织和癌旁非癌组织中与HCC相关的四种最常见癌症干细胞标志物,即CD44、CD90、CD133和上皮细胞粘附分子(EpCAM)的表达,并探讨它们与临床病理特征和患者生存的关系。

方法

纳入在泰国国家癌症研究所接受根治性肝切除术的HCC患者。收集肿瘤组织和配对的癌旁非癌组织,采用免疫组织化学(IHC)分析CD44、CD90、CD133和EpCAM的表达。根据染色强度和范围计算IHC评分。评估标志物表达与临床病理特征之间的关联,并采用Kaplan-Meier法分析总生存期。

结果

与相邻正常组织相比,所有四种癌症干细胞标志物在肿瘤组织中均显著过表达(P < 0.05)。然而,未发现标志物表达与临床病理参数之间存在统计学显著关联。Kaplan-Meier分析显示高表达组和低表达组的总生存期无显著差异。尽管如此,CD44和CD133低表达的患者往往有更好的生存结局,尽管无统计学意义。

结论

研究结果表明,CD44、CD90、CD133和EpCAM在HCC肿瘤组织中富集,支持它们在肝癌发生中的作用。然而,在该队列中未发现与临床特征或生存的强相关性。

https://cdn.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/blobs/8bdf/12336425/16d74f8fb01b/cureus-0017-00000089761-i01.jpg

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