The Relationship between Prognostic Factors and the Expression Pattern of Fascin and E-cadherin in Renal Cell Carcinoma

Kang, Sung Hee; Chae, Seoung Wan; Lee, Kyoung Bun; Kim, Dong Hoon; Kim, Min Kyoung; Sohn, Jin Hee

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Fascin is associated with motility in various transformed cells. Overexpression of fascin is known to aid in the progression of some cancers and is associated with a poor prognosis. E-cadherin is a major protein of epithelial cells and its expression is involved in the regulation of cell proliferation and differentiation. The aim of this study was to determine the expression pattern for fascin and E-cadherin and how it is related to the prognostic factors for renal cell carcinoma (RCC).
METHODS
The expression of fascin and E-cadherin was evaluated in 208 RCCs including 175 clear cell, 20 papillary, and 9 chromophobe types using tissue array analysis.
RESULTS
The expression of fascin increased as the tumor stage (p=0.00) and Fuhrman grade (p=0.00) increased. A high positive rate of expression for fascin was observed in cases with sarcomatoid changes (p=0.27). E-cadherin expression was seen in the distal tubules and collecting ducts of normal kidneys with a membranous pattern. The positive rate of expression for E-cadherin increased as the Fuhrman grade increased (1, 0%; 2, 23.2%; 3, 34.9%; and 4, 53.8%, p=0.00). An inverse correlation in RCCs was observed in the expression of fascin and E-cadherin (p=0.026, r=-0.158).
CONCLUSIONS
In patients with RCC, the increased expression of fascin and E-cadherin was positively correlated to poor prognostic factors such as a higher Fuhrman nuclear grade and advanced pTNM stage.