Evaluation of prognostic value of vascular endothelial growth factor and endocan in non-small cell lung cancer

TL;DR

This study investigates whether VEGF and endocan can be used as biomarkers for early-stage non-small cell lung cancer screening and prognosis.

Contribution

The study identifies VEGF as a potential biomarker for NSCLC screening and treatment evaluation, while endocan is found to be ineffective.

Findings

Preoperative VEGF levels were significantly higher in NSCLC patients compared to controls.

VEGF levels decreased significantly after surgery, suggesting potential for treatment efficacy evaluation.

Endocan levels did not differ significantly between patients and controls and were not useful as a biomarker.

Abstract

No reliable, easily measurable biomarker currently exists for the screening or prognosis of lung cancer. The present study evaluates the potential utility of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and endocan, which can be readily measured in blood samples, as biomarkers for screening and prognostic assessment in lung cancer.

Included in the study were 38 patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 29 controls. All patients underwent surgical intervention and were monitored for 1 month postoperatively. Serum VEGF and endocan levels were measured preoperatively and postoperatively. Clinical characteristics, laboratory data, and histopathological findings were recorded for all participants.

The preoperative VEGF levels of the patients were significantly higher than those of the controls (p = 0.001), while postoperative VEGF levels decreased significantly following surgery (p < 0.001). The endocan levels of the patients and controls were similar preoperatively. Additionally, endocan levels were significantly increased after the surgery in the patient group (p < 0.001). A comparison of VEGF and endocan levels according to TNM staging and tumor histopathology revealed no significant differences.

VEGF can serve as a potential biomarker for screening and prognostic assessment in early-stage NSCLC. In contrast, endocan did not demonstrate utility for such clinical purposes. VEGF may also be considered for the evaluation of treatment efficacy following surgical intervention.

Figures