COX-2 Expression And Significance In Patients With Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

OBJECTIVE:Cyclooxygenase-2(COX-2)is a rate-limiting enzyme in prostaglandin synthesis,which has double function both cyclooxygenase and peroxidase.COX-2 was closely related to pathogenesis and progression of tumors.The aim of this study is to investigate the biological significances of COX-2 expression in nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.METHODS:The expression of COX-2 was detected in 90 Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma tissues and 22 nasopharyngitis tissues by SP immunohistochemical method.RESULT:The positive expression of COX-2 protein was detectable in 67.78%of all 90 Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma tissues,and in 36.36%of 22 nasopharyngitis tissues,the two have significant discrepancy(X~2 =7.38,P=0.01);the positive ratio of COX-2 expression in patients with the lymth nodes stage of N2 and N3 was 83.8%(X~2= 10.23,P=0.017),these illustrated the positive ratio and the level of the expression of COX-2 was closely related to the stages of local metastasised lymph nodes(P＜0.05),but not to age,gender, clinical stages,distant metastasis(P＞0.05).The positive expression of COX-2 gene wasn't related to the primary efficacy of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients treated with radiotherapy. CONCLUSION:There was high expression of COX-2 in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma tissues,which might be an important event in the pathogenesis and progression of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.but it can't be a target of evaluating primary efficacy of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients treated with radiotherapy.