Background: The function of iASPP (inhibitory member of the ASPP family) in cervical adenocarcinoma remains unknown. The aim of this study was to explore the expression and clinical relevance of iASPP in early stage cervical adenocarcinoma. Methods The clinical data of 75 patients with FIGO stage IA2-IIA cervical adenocarcinoma who were treated with radical hysterectomy from January 2004 to March 2008 was collected. The mRNA and protein expression levels of iASPP from the paired tumor specimens and adjacent normal cervical tissues were determined by real-time qRT-PCR and Western blot, and its relationship with clinicopathologic factors and prognosis of cervical cancer patients was retrospectively analyzed.
Results: The mRNA and protein expression levels of iASPP were significantly elevated in cervical cancer tissues. The increased iASPP expression was correlated strongly with higher FIGO staging (p = 0.034), worse differentiation (p = 0.046), less pelvic lymph node metastasis (p = 0.014), and poor overall and disease-free survival of patients with cervical cancer (both P > 0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis indicated that high iASPP expression was an independent prognostic factor (P > 0.05).
Conclusions: This study demonstrates that iASPP is highly elevated in cervical adenocarcinoma, and that overexpression is an independent poor prognostic indicator for early stage cervical cancer patients, suggesting that iASPP might serve as a novel potential prognostic marker and therapeutic target for cervical adenocarcinoma.
Keywords: Cervical adenocarcinoma; iASPP; prognostic factors; radical hysterectomy.