SIGNIFICANCE OF CIRCULATING HEPATOCYTE GROWTH-FACTOR LEVEL AS A PROGNOSTIC INDICATOR IN PRIMARY BREAST-CANCER

The circulating hepatocyte growth factor (HGF)/scatter factor level is frequently increased in advanced cancer patients, In this study, we h ave assessed the prognostic value of the circulating HGF level determi ned by enzymatic immunoassay in primary breast cancer patients, Of 200 primary breast cancer patients, 54 (27.0%) showed the increase of ser um HGF level according to the age-matched cutoff values, The prognosis of the patients with the increased HGF level was statistically worse than that of the patients with normal HGF level (P = 0.0001, log-rank test), Multivariate analysis confirmed that the increase in HGF level was an independent prognostic indicator in primary breast cancer patie nts, In the background analysis, the increase in serum HGF level was s ignificantly associated with tumor size, nodal status, and histologica l evidence of venous invasion, The data indicate that up-regulation of the circulating HGF level may predict systemic tumor spread and early relapse in primary breast cancer patients.