PROGNOSTIC VALUE OF CD44 SPLICE VARIANTS IN INVASIVE CERVICAL-CARCINOMA

Objective: Aberrant expression of specific isoforms of the cell adhesi on molecule CD44 has been detected in various malignant human tumors. We wanted to verify whether the expression of these splice variants wa s associated with a higher incidence of metastasis and poor prognosis. Methods: We studied the expression of CD44 splice variants v5, v6 and v7-8 by immunohistochemistry in human cervical cancer. 105 surgically treated patients with cervical cancer of stages IB-IIB were included in the study. Results: Tumors expressing exon v6 had significantly mor e often metastasized to the pelvic nodes (p = 0.04), and patients suff ering from tumors expressing CD44v6 showed poorer overall survival. Ev en in cases with negative pelvic lymph nodes, we found a significantly poorer prognosis when tumors expressed CD44v6, Conclusions: Among the investigated CD44 splice variants, expression of exons v6 and v7-8 is the most promising prognostic marker in cervical cancer. They can pos sibly identify patients with an increased risk earlier than morphologi c prognostic parameters.