FHL1 as a novel prognostic biomarker and correlation with immune infiltration levels in lung adenocarcinoma

Plain language summaryThe advent of immunotherapy has considerably changed non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treatment, allowing a subset of patients to live longer and have a better prognosis. However, not all patients benefit from immunotherapy. Therefore it is urgently necessary to develop universal and effective biomarkers of NSCLC for diagnosis and prognostic evaluation to effectively diagnose the disease and increase the utility of immunotherapy. In this study, a protein called FHL1 was identified as a potential predictive biomarker according to NSCLC databases, and we further investigated the underlying relationship between FHL1 and immunotherapy. In conclusion, FHL1 is a promising biomarker for the diagnosis, prognosis and immune infiltration level of lung adenocarcinoma. Aim: We aimed to examine the effect of FHL1 in the diagnosis and prognosis of non-small-cell lung cancer and its relationship with tumor-infiltrating immune cells. Methods: FHL1 expression status and influence on clinical characteristics, diagnosis and prognosis in non-small-cell lung cancer were assessed. Interaction networks of FHL1 were revealed, and a correlation analysis between FHL1 expression and tumor immunity was performed. Results: FHL1 expression was significantly lower in tumors, and downregulated FHL1 predicted a worse prognosis for lung adenocarcinoma. FHL1 expression was correlated with tumor-infiltrating immune cells, immune checkpoints and chemokine levels. Conclusion: FHL1 is a powerful biomarker to evaluate the diagnosis and prognosis and immune infiltration level of lung adenocarcinoma.