Serum vascular endothelial growth factor: a prognostic factor in cervical cancer

Purpose  To study pre-treatment serum VEGF of patients with invasive cervical cancer and its possible role as prognostic indicator. Methods  VEGF was measured using ELISA in the largest patient group (n = 167) to date. Reults  Serum VEGF was significantly higher in advanced tumor stage (P = 0.01), large tumor size (tumors larger than 2 cm) (P = 0.03), and the presence of vascular space invasion (P = 0.05). Serum VEGF was associated with disease free and overall survival [DFS: Hazard Ratio (HR) = 2.61; 95% CI 1.32–5.17; P = 0.006; for OS: HR = 2.09; 95% CI 1.54–2.84; P < 0.001, respectively]. In multivariate Cox regression serum VEGF retained its prognostic value for DFS (HR = 2.10, P = 0.03) and OS (HR = 1.92, P = 0.04). Conclusions  Serum VEGF levels correlate with more advanced and more aggressive disease in cervical cancer and may be a useful prognostic factor in patients with cervical cancer.