# Relationship between the expression of copper death promoting factor SLC31A1 in papillary thyroid carcinoma and clinicopathological indicators and prognosis

## TL;DR

High levels of SLC31A1, a copper death-promoting factor, are linked to worse outcomes in papillary thyroid cancer patients.

## Contribution

Identifies SLC31A1 as an independent prognostic biomarker for papillary thyroid carcinoma.

## Key findings

- Elevated SLC31A1 levels correlate with advanced cancer stages and poor differentiation.
- High SLC31A1 is an independent predictor of poor prognosis (HR = 1.235).
- SLC31A1 shows strong predictive accuracy (AUC = 0.859) for prognosis in PTC patients.

## Abstract

This study investigates the association between serum SLC31A1, a copper death-promoting factor, and clinicopathological features/prognosis in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC).

A cohort of 250 PTC patients was stratified into good (n = 205) and poor (n = 45) prognosis groups. Clinicopathological parameters (age, sex, tumor diameter, differentiation, TNM stage, thyroid exocapsular invasion, lymph node metastasis) and serum SLC31A1 levels (measured via ELISA) were analyzed. Patients were further categorized into high/low SLC31A1 expression groups based on median values. Prognostic correlations were evaluated using Kaplan–Meier survival analysis, Cox regression, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve assessment.

Elevated serum SLC31A1 levels were significantly associated with poor prognosis, advanced TNM stages (III/IV), poor differentiation, thyroid exocapsular invasion, and lymph node metastasis. Multivariate Cox analysis identified high SLC31A1 as an independent predictor of poor prognosis (HR = 1.235, 95% CI 1.158–1.317). ROC analysis demonstrated strong predictive accuracy for SLC31A1 in prognosis assessment (AUC = 0.859).

High serum SLC31A1 expression correlates with aggressive clinicopathological features and independently predicts adverse outcomes in PTC patients, suggesting its potential as a prognostic biomarker for clinical stratification.