Abstract:
Objective To investigate the expression of class Ⅲ β-tubulin(TUBB3)in advanced gastric cancer and analyze its correlationwith the chemotherapeutic effect of paclitaxel and the prognosis of patients.
Methods This study reviewed 49 cases with advancedgastric cancer, diagnosed from December 2008 to December 2011 at Shaoyang Central Hospital.All patients were treated with paclitaxel or docetaxel-based chemotherapy.TUBB3 expression was determined using immunohistochemistry.Relationships of the expressionof TUBB3 protein with chemotherapy response, progression-free survival(PFS), and overall survival(OS)were analyzed.
Results Among the 46 valid cases treated with paclitaxel or docetaxel-based regimen, treatment response was as follows: complete response(CR)in 1 patient, partial response(PR)in 17 patients, stable disease(SD)in 22 patients, and progression disease(PD)in 6 patients.Theoverall response rate(CR+PR)was 39.13%(18/46).The chemotherapy response rates in low and high TUBB3 expression groups were54.17%(13/24)and 22.73%(5/22), respectively(χ2=4.736, P=0.029).The patients with low TUBB3 expression had significantly longermedian PFS and OS than those with high TUBB3 expression(PFS 5.9 vs.3.9 months, P=0.032;OS 11.6 vs.7.9 months, P=0.001).Univariate analysis and multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the expression of TUBB3 was an independent prognostic factor inadvanced gastric cancer.
Conclusions The present study demonstrates that TUBB3 expression in advanced gastric cancer is associatedwith chemotherapy response and prognosis; especifically, the low expression group had a better chemotherapy response and prognosis than the high expression group.The result of this study may provide a new sight for tailored chemotherapy and for predicting prognosis of individuals with advanced gastric cancer.