Expression of CK19 mRNA in peripheral blood of patients with NSCLC and its clinical significance

Objective To discuss the significance of diagnosis and prognosis by detecting the expression of CK19 mRNA in peripheral blood of patients with non-small cell lung cancer.Methods The expression of CK19 mRNA in peripheral blood of the experimental and control groups were detected by RTPCR.All patients of experimental group were followed up.20 healthy individuals and 20 patients with lung benign lesions served as controls.Results CK19 mRNA positive were detected in 46.5%( 79 /170) of experimental group patients,5%( 2 /40) of controls( X2= 20.82,P 0.01).32.4%( 24 /74) of non-small cell lung caner( NSCLC) patients with CK19 mRNA-positive relapsed during the follow-up period,over the patients with CK19 mRNA-negative( 17.07%,X2= 4.98,P 0.05).The patients with peripheral blood CK19 mRNA-positive was associated with reduced median relapse-free interval( P = 0.003).Conclusion The detection of CK19 mRNA by RT-PCR is regarded as a effective method to detect the micrometastasis of NSCLC,which is important for diagnosis,treat and prognostic judgment,and it might have an important predictive and prognostic value as a marker of relapse and poor clinical outcome in NSCLC patients.