Expression of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor in Pancreatic Carcinoma and its Relationship to Angiogenesis

Purpose To investigate the relationship among the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF),angiogenesis and clinicopathologic factors in pancreatic carcinoma(PCA). Methods The expression of VEGF and microvascular density(MVD) were examined by using immunohistochemical technique in 30 cases of pancreatic carcinoma. Results The expression of VEGF in tumor tissue was found in 63.3%(19/30) of cases.MVD was significantly higher in VEGF positive tumors than in VEGF negative tumors ( P 0.05).The rate of VEGF expression in group of stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ was significantly higher than in group of stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ( P 0.05).No correlation was detected among the expression of VEGF,MVD and pathological grades of PCA. Conclusions Enhanced expression of VEGF was found in tissues of PCA.VEGF is a potent angiogenic factor and promotes growth,metastasis of PCA.VEGF expression or MVD is one of the predictors for the biological behavior of PCA.