Correlation of E-cadherin expression with invasion and metastasis in gastric carcinoma

【Objective】To study the relation between the expression of E-cadherin(E-cad) and the metastasis,the invasion of gastric carcinoma.【Methods】The expression of E-cadherin was detected by immunohistochemical method in 32 patients with gastric cancer and matched with normal gastric mucosa.【Results】The positive rate of E-cad expression in gastric cancer was significantly lower than that in normal gastric mucosa(P0.001),which was correlated with the type of gastric cancer,level of differentiation,depth of invasion,metastasis status of lymph node and TNM stage(P0.05).【Conclusions】Expression level of E-cadherin may reflect the tumor invasion and metastasis and may be a potentially valuable parameter for predicting the prognosis and patient′s condition.