The prognosis of patients with advanced oesophageal cancer (EC) and gastric cancer (GC) is poor. Circulating microRNAs (ci-miRNAs) may have prognostic and predictive value to improve patient selection for palliative treatment. The purpose of this study is to assess the prognostic and predictive value of specific ci-miRNAs in plasma of patients with EC and GC treated with first-line palliative gemcitabine and cisplatin. Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) was used to quantify miR-200c-3p, miR-375, miR-21-5p, miR-148a-3p, miR-146a-5p, miR-141-3p and miR-218-5p in plasma from 68 patients. ci-miRNA expression was analyzed in relation to overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and response to chemotherapy. ci-miRNA levels were detectable in 36 baseline (71%) samples and in 14 (47%) follow-up samples. Increased circulating miR-200c-3p in GC showed a trend (p = 0.06) towards a shorter OS. High circulating miR-375 was associated with a longer OS (p = 0.02) in patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). No significant difference was observed in ci-miRNA expression between paired pre- and on-treatment samples. ci-miRNA expression was not associated with response to chemotherapy. ci-miRNAs can be measured in plasma samples of patients treated with first-line palliative chemotherapy using ddPCR despite prolonged storage in heparin. Elevated circulating miR-375 might be a prognostic marker for patients with EAC.
Keywords: Cisplatin; Esophagogastric cancer; Gemcitabine; MicroRNA; Vitamin B12.
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