Expressions of COX-2 and VEGF-C proteins in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical cancer tissues

OBJECTIVE:To study the expressions and significance of COX-2 and VEGF-C proteins in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia(CIN)and cervical cancer.METHODS:The immunohistochemieal method was used to examine the expressions of COX-2 and VEGF-C proteins in 58 cases of cervical cancer,61 cases of CIN and 30 cases of normal cervical epithelium.RESULTS:The overall positive expression rates of COX-2 and VEGF-C in cervical cancer and CIN were significantly different from that of normal cervical tissues(χ2 were 18.96 and 15.46,P0.01).The expression of COX-2 in cervical cancer was significantly related to the histological subtypes and the metastasis of lymph node(χ2 were 7.53 and 10.79,P0.01),while the expression of VEGF-C was closely related to the clinical stage(χ2=6.72,P0.01),histological subtypes(χ2=8.05,P0.01)and metastasis of lymph node(χ2=21.64,P0.01).The expression of VEGF-C was closely associated with COX-2 in CIN and cervical cancer(r were 0.76 and 0.58,P0.01).CONCLUSION:The expressions of COX-2 and VEGF-C are related to the oncogenesis and development of cervical cancer and they may play important roles in the invasion and metastasis of cervical cancer.