Expression of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 protein in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the expression of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3(STAT3)protein in hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)tissues and its significance in occurrence and development of HCC.METHODS:The expression of STAT3 protein was examined with immunohistochemical technique in the specimens from 56 HCC tissues and their para-carcinoma tissues,11 hepatic cirrhosis tissues and 11 normal liver tissues,and the expressions of VEGFR2 and EGFR were examind in 27 and 42 HCC tissues,respectively.RESULTS:The positive and strongly positive expressions of STAT3 protein in HCC tissues were in 23 and 9 cases respectively,the positive rate of STAT3 expression was significantly higher in HCC tissues than in the para-carcinoma tissues,its expression in para-carcinoma tissues was higher than that in hepatic cirrhosis tissues,and its expression in hepatic cirrhosis tissues was significantly higher than that in normal liver tissues,P0.01.The expression of STAT3 was correlated with the expression of AFP in HCC tissues,P0.05.There was no significant correlation between the expression of STAT3 protein and the expressions of VEGFR2 and EGFR in HCC tissues.CONCLUSIONS:The expression of STAT3 is closely correlated with the occurrence and development of HCC.