Background: The purpose of this study was to determine whether lysosome-associated protein transmembrane-4 beta (LAPTM4B) overexpression is associated with the prognosis in patients with colorectal cancer.
Methods: LAPTM4B expression was evaluated in colorectal cancer patients by Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine the association between LAPTM4B expression and prognosis.
Results: Among the 136 patients with colorectal cancer, 51 patients had low LAPTM4B expression, and 85 patients had high LAPTM4B expression. The sensitivity and specificity of LAPTM4B overexpression were 62.5% and 100%, respectively. The 5-year overall survival (OS) rates for patients with high and low LAPTM4B expression were 37.38% and 98.04%, respectively (hazard ratio = 22.774; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.287-98.091; P < .0001). The 5-year disease-free survival rate was 21.15% for patients in the high-expression group and 91.82% for patients in the low-expression group (hazard ratio = 11.674; 95% CI, 3.562-38.263; P < .0001).
Conclusions: LAPTM4B overexpression is an independent factor in colorectal cancer prognosis, and it may be an important potential biomarker.
Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.