Prognostic Significance of Cyclin B1 and p53 Expression in Patient with Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Kim, Chi Hak; Jo, Bhong Gyun; Cho, Sung Rae; Chun, Bong Kwon

Abstract

BACKGROUND: It has been reported that p53 regulates the G2-M checkpoint transition through cyclin B1, and it has been suggested that p53 plays an important role in the development and progression of various malignancies. The aim of this study is to clarify the role of the cell cycle regulators, cyclin B1 and p53 in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). MATERIAL AND METHOD: Tissue samples from 46 patients with ESCC were included in this study. Expression levels of cyclin B1 and p53 in samples of normal squamous epithelium, dysplasia, and tumor cells from patients with ESCC were analyzed by immunohistochemical study. RESULT: Several cells in the basement layer of normal epithelium expressed cyclin B1. The number of cyclin B1 positive cells tended to increase as the degree of dysplasia increased from low grade to high grade. More than 10% of tumor cells were cyclin B1 positive in 19 patients (41.3%). Several clinicopathologic parameters, including tumor stage (p<0.05), pathologic lymph node status (p<0.05) and invasion of lymphatic vessels (p<0.05), were correlated with the overexpression of cyclin B1. Elevated expression levels of cyclin B1 also correlated with a poor prognosis in patient with ESCC in univariate analysis (p<0.05) and multivariate analysis (p<0.05). In contrast, p53 expression exhibited significant correlation with the level of cyclin B1 expression, but was not associated with prognostic parameters in patients with ESCC.
CONCLUSION
These findings suggest that cyclin B1 is involved in the pathogenesis of carcinoma of the esophagus and that elevated levels of cyclin B1 expression, but not p53 expression, may indicate a poor prognosis for patients with ESCC.