Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor C and its correlation with lymph node metastasis in gastric carcinoma

Objective To study the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C) in gastric carcinoma and its relationship with lymph node metastasis.Methods The expression of VEGF-C mRNA in 5 gastric carcinoma cell lines was examined by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).Simultaneously,the expression of VEGF-C protein in gastric carcinoma tissues obtained from 63 patients who underwent radical gastrectomy was detected by immunohistochemistry.Results Three of the 5 gastric carcinoma cell lines,including MKN-45,SGC-7901 and AGS,expressed VEGF-C mRNA.VEGF-C protein was expressed in 52.4% (33/63) of patients.VEGF-C protein expression was more frequently detected in tumors with lymph node metastasis than in those without ( P 0.01).VEGF-C protein expression was also closely related to lymphatic invasion ( P 0.01) and TNM stage ( P 0.01).However,there was no significant correlation between VEGF-C expression and the age,gender,tumor size,tumor location,Lauren classification,depth of invasion,and vascular invasion.Conclusion The expression of VEGF-C is closely related to lymph node metastasis of gastric carcinoma.