MUC2 but not MUC5 expression correlates with prognosis in radically resected pancreatic cancer patients

Introduction: Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive gastrointestinal cancer with less than 10% long-term survivors. The apoptotic pathway deregulation is a postulated mechanism of carcinogenesis of this tumor. The present study investigated the prognostic role of MUC2 and MUC5 apomucin expression in a series of surgically resected pancreatic cancer patients. Results: By univariate analysis, survival was influenced by MUC2 expression but not by MUC5 expression. The MUC2 overexpression was associated with better prognosis (p = 0.003). By a multivariate Cox regression analysis, MUC2 overexpression maintained the prognostic statistical value. In particular, patients with high MUC2 staining showed a longer survival. Moreover the present study does report the absence of a prognostic role of MUC5 expression in this type of cancer. Material and methods: All patients affected by pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and treated with surgical resection from 1988-2003 were considered for the study. MUC2 and MUC5 expression were evaluated by immunohistochemical staining. Tumor specimens of 59 resected patients were included in the study. Conclusions: the study demonstrated the prognostic relevance of MUC2 expression in pancreatic cancer and underlined its potential role as target gene in the field of therapy research. ©2009 Landes Bioscience.