Abstract:
Objective To evaluate the clinical significance of Lunx mRNA detection in the peripheral blood of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Methods Lunx mRNA expression was detected by fluorescence quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction in the peripheral blood from 98 NSCLC patients and a control group of 20 healthy adults.
Results The positive rate of Lunx mRNA in peripheral blood in the NSCLC group was 74.5%, significantly higher than that in the control group (χ2 = 25.642, P < 0.05). The expression rate increased significantly as the clinical stage progressed (χ2 = 21.014, P < 0.05). Significant difference was found among the different lymph node metastasis status ( χ2 = 27.372, P < 0.05) and different cell differentiation status (χ2 = 30.004, P < 0.05). No significant difference was noted between the positive rates of Lunx mRNA for different ages, gender, history of smoking, and primary tumor position of NSCLC (P > 0.05).
Conclusion Higher Lunx mRNA expression in the peripheral blood of NSCLC patients may be related to the micro-metastasis of the disease and might be a valuable marker for micrometastasis. Lunx mRNA detection is significant for the early prediction of NSCLC prognosis and metastasis.