High Expression of Stromal Cell-Derived Factor 1 (SDF-1) and NF-κB Predicts Poor Prognosis in Cervical Cancer

Background: SDF-1 and NF-kappa B are associated with the prognosis of a wide range of cancers, but their value in cervical cancer remains controversial. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of SDF-1 and NF-kappa B in cervical cancer and their significance in clinical prognosis. Material/Methods: The expression of SDF-1 and NF-kappa B in 105 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded cervical cancer tissues and the adjacent tissues was examined by immunohistochemistry (IHC). The results were semi-quantitatively scored and analyzed by chi-square test. The overall survival times (OS) were collected by follow-up and analyzed by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Results: The expression level of both SDF-1 and NF-kappa B in cervical cancer are higher than that in the adjacent tissues (P<0.05). SDF-1 expression are correlated with tumor size and FIGO histology grade (P<0.05). NF-kappa B expression are correlated with tumor size and FIGO histology grade, and lymph node metastasis (LNM) status (P<0.05). The patients with a positive expression of SDF-1or NF-kappa B tended to have much shorter survival time than patients with negative expression. In addition, multivariate Cox regression analysis demonstrated that SDF-1 expression and lymph node metastasis are independent predictors of the OS in cervical cancer patients. Conclusions: The expression of SDF-1 is significantly associated with tumor size and FIGO histology grade. The expression of NF-kappa B is significantly associated with tumor size, FIGO histology grade, and lymph node metastasis. The positive SDF-1or NF-kappa B expression is significantly correlated with poor prognosis. These may be valuable biomarkers for the prognosis and the potential therapeutic targets of cervical cancer.