High SPINK4 Expression Predicts Poor Outcomes among Rectal Cancer Patients Receiving CCRT.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Patients with rectal cancer can prospectively be favored for neoadjuvant concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) to downstage before a radical proctectomy, but the risk stratification and clinical outcomes remain disappointing.

Methods

From a published rectal cancer transcriptome dataset (GSE35452), we highlighted extracellular matrix (ECM)-linked genes and identified the serine protease inhibitor Kazal-type 4 (SPINK4) gene as the most relevant among the top 10 differentially expressed genes associated with CCRT resistance. We accumulated the cases of 172 rectal cancer patients who received neoadjuvant CCRT followed by surgery and collected tumor specimens for the evaluation of the expression of SPINK4 using immunohistochemistry.

Results

The results revealed th

SUBMITTER: Chen TJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8293060 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature