High expression of Transient potential receptor C6 correlated with poor prognosis in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

TRPC6 plays a crucial role in the tumor progression of various cancers. The relation between the expression of TRPC6 and clinical prognosis has not been studied yet. Our study was to elucidate the role of TRPC6 in predicting outcomes of patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Fresh frozen samples were collected immediately from 172 patients with ESCC after surgical resection from 2003 to 2008 at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, including 45 pairs of tumor tissues and nontumor tissues. TRPC6 expression was measured by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blotting analyses. TRPC6 mRNA and protein were up-regulated in ESCC tissues when compared with the paired nontumor tissues. High expression of TRPC6 mRNA was associated with the higher pT status (P = 0.016) and pathological staging (P = 0.040). The 5-year disease-specific survival in the high expression of TRPC6 mRNA group (>188.98, n = 81) is poorer than that in low-level expression group (<= 188.98, n = 91) (42.1 vs. 62.7 %, P = 0.004). Stratified analysis according to the pathological stage revealed its discernibility on DSS was only pronounced in patients with pStage III (P = 0.015). Cox multivariate analysis revealed that pN category (P < 0.001; Relative risk, 2.897, 95 % CI 1.830-4.585) and the expression of TRPC6 mRNA (P = 0.006; Relative risk, 1.863, 95 % CI 1.196-2.902) were independent prognostic factors. TRPC6 mRNA overexpression correlated with poor prognosis in patients with ESCC and might serve as a novel prognostic biomarker for resected ESCC patients in advanced stage.