NUAK2蛋白在Luminal型乳腺癌组织中的表达及意义

目的评估NUAK2蛋白在Luminal型乳腺癌组织中的表达水平和临床意义。方法使用免疫组织化学方法，检测Luminal型乳腺癌患者组织标本中NUAK2蛋白的表达水平，与癌旁组织进行比较，并分析其与患者的临床特征、病理特征及预后的关系。结果NUAK2蛋白在Luminal型乳腺癌组织中的表达水平高于癌旁乳腺组织（P=0.032）；术后因肿瘤复发而死亡的患者，其肿瘤组织中的NUAK2蛋白表达水平也较高（P=0.037）；NUAK2蛋白高表达组患者更容易出现淋巴结转移（P=0.038），且无复发生存率（P=0.035）和总体生存率（P=0.024）也明显下降；NUAK2蛋白表达水平升高与患者乳腺癌复发明显相关（P=0.011）。结论NUAK2蛋白在Luminal型乳腺癌组织中高表达，其表达水平与淋巴结的转移、肿瘤的复发和患者的预后存在相关性，推测NUAK2可能是乳腺癌的一个癌基因。

Expression and clinical significance of NUAK2 protein in Luminal breast cancer

ObjectiveTo evaluate the expression and clinical significance of NUAK2 protein in Luminal breast cancer. MethodsThe expression of NUAK2 protein in cancer and pericancerous tissue samples of 50 patients with Luminal breast cancer by using immunohistochemical staining technique. The expression levels of NUAK2 were compared between cancer and pericancerous tissues, and the correlation of NUAK2 expression with clinicopathological features and the prognosis of patients was analyzed. ResultsThe expression of NUAK2 protein in Luminal breast cancer was higher than that in pericancerous breast tissues (P=0.032), and it was also higher in the patients who died due to tumor recurrence than that in surviving ones (P=0.037). Patients with high expression of NUAK2 protein were more likely to have lymph node metastasis (P=0.038), and significantly lower recurrence-free survival rate (P=0.035) and overall survival rate (P=0.024). Increased expression of NUAK2 protein was significantly correlated with breast cancer recurrence (P=0.011). ConclusionNUAK2 protein is highly expressed in Luminal breast cancer tissues, and its expression level is correlated with lymph node metastasis, tumor recurrence and poorer prognosis of patients.