EARLY-STAGE HUMAN COLORECTAL-CANCER - PROGNOSTIC VALUE OF NM23-H1 PROTEIN OVEREXPRESSION

Nm23 gene codifies for a nucleoside diphosphate kinase allowing the in tracellular transduction of the signals. In colorectal cancer nm23 pro tein expression seems related to the progression of the disease. By im munohistochemistry we have studied the intracytoplasmatic nm23 H1 prot ein expression in 20 patients affected by colorectal cancer at initial stage. In 12 cases it resulted elevated and in four the disease recur red. The overexpression was not correlated with other prognostic facto rs. Nm23 HI-positive patients affected by colorectal cancer at initial ;stage could be considered at risk for disease recurrence and included in a more frequent follow-up protocol. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Irel and Ltd. All rights reserved