Abstract: Objective: To study the mRNA copy number of survivin, protein expression of survivin and the apoptotic index (AI) in gastric carcinomas, to analyze the relationships between these 3 clinical parameters and pathologic results and to discuss the significance in terms of diagnosis and prognosis. Methods: The copy number of survivin mRNA was measured by quantitative PCR with a molecular beacon probe, using a cDNA clone as a standard for the absolute quantitative assay. The protein expression was investigated by immunohistochemistry (IHC) SP method, and the apoptotic index was analyzed with TUNEL. Results: The copy number of survivin mRNA and positive rate of protein expression were higher in tumor tissues than in the normal controls (P<0.05) and the apoptotic index was lower in tumor tissues than in normal tissues. There was a significant positive correlation between the copy number of survivin mRNA and the survival time and pathological types, and there was a negative correlation between the copy number of survivin mRNA and AI (r=-0.252, P<0.05). There was a significant correlation between the positive rate of survivin protein expression and survival time. The copy number of mRNA in the positive protein expression group was higher than in the negative expression group, and the AI was lower in the positive expression group than in the negative expression group, but there was no statistical significance between them (P>0.05). There was no significant correlation between the expression of survivin mRNA and protein (P>0.05). Conclusion: The copy number of survivin mRNA and protein expression rates were higher in gastric carcinoma than in normal controls. Survivin mRNA and protein levels may be potential molecular indicators for prognosis. There is upregulation of survivin mRNA and protein expression in gastric cancer, which can be used as biological index for diagnosis.