The Expression And The Significance Of YKL-40 In The Tissue And Serum Of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

OBJECTIVETo explore the clinic significance of YKL-40 in serum and tissue of patients with epithelial ovarian cancer.METHODS1.All blood samples were collected from patients with epithelial ovarian cancer(n=46),ovarian benign epithelial tumor(n=25)and normal individuals(n=10).And blood samples of the patients with epithelial ovarian cancer were collected within 5-7 days after operation.Serum YKL-40 level was analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.2.Expression of YKL-40 in tissue of patients with epithelial ovarian cancer(n=46),ovarian benign epithelial tumor(n=25) and normal individuals(n=10) was detected by immunohistochemical technique.RERSULTS1.Serum YKL-40 level of normal cases was 29.53±13.83ng/ml (range,13.56-85.42ng/ml),and serum YKL-40 level of patients with ovarian benign epithelial tumor was 33.67±15.64ng/ml (range,19.61-98.09ng/ml,P=0.796 compared with normal cases),and serum YKL-40 level of patients with epithelial ovarian cancer with presurgery was 136.93±92.12ng/ml(range,20.82-446.34 ng/ml,P＜0.001 compared with normal and benign ovarian epithelial tumor),and serum YKL-40 level of patients with epithelial ovarian cancer with postsurgery was 68.45±71.27 ng/ml(range,20.10-472.25ng/ml,P＜0.001 compared with presurgery).2.There was stastistically significant association of serum YKL-40 level with CA125 and clinical stage(P＜0.05).There was no statistically significant association of serum YKL-40 level with pathological grading and histologic classification.There was stastistical difference between the serum YKL-40 level of epithelial ovarian cancer patients(n=37)with presurgery and after staging laparotomy and optimal cytoreductive surgery(112.84±60.46 ng/ml vs 48.35±25.80 ng/ml,t=7.335, P＜0.001).There was stastistical difference between the serum YKL-40 level of epithelial ovarian cancer patients(n=6)with presurgery and after suboptimal cytoreductive surgery(247.60±103.70 ng/ml vs 112.12±28.81 ng/ml,t=3.709,P＜0.01).3.There were no expression of YKL-40 in normal ovarian tissue.The expression of YKL-40 in epithelial ovarian cancer cases was higher than that in benign ovarian epithelial tumor(33/46 vs 7/32,P＜0.005).The postive expression rate of YKL-40 was higher in malignant serous tumor than in the benign tumor(P=0.009).There was stastistically significant association of serun YKL-40 expression with clinical stage and pathological grading(P＜0.05).4.The relationship between serum YKL-40 level and the tissue of YKL-40 expression in patients of epithelial ovarian cancer was liner regression.CONCLUSIONS1.Preoperative serum YKL-40 in epithelial ovarian cancer was frequently elevated and it decreased after surgery.The serum YKL-40 level was higher in the advanced cancer.YKL-40 might become a novel marker for detection and prognostic evaluatiion of epithelial ovarian cancer.2.The tissue YKL-40 level was higher in malignant epithelial ovarian tumor than in benign tumor.The positive expression rate of tissue YKL-40 was related to clinical stage and pathological grading.Detection of YKL-40 might be helpful to evaluate malignant degree of epithelial ovarian cancer.