The prognostic and predictive values of SPARC, E-cadherin, and EZH2 in endometrial carcinoma

Endometrial carcinoma (EC) is one of the most common malignancies among gynecological tumors. Currently, sensitive and effective biomarkers for the clinical diagnosis, treatment, and efficacy evaluation of EC are urgently needed. Among the most promising cancer prognostic biomarkers, SPARC, E-cadherin, and EZH2 play crucial roles in the tumorigenesis and progression of different cancer types. However, the roles of SPARC, E-cadherin, and EZH2 in EC are still unclear. Here, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) were performed to measure the SPARC, E-cadherin, and EZH2 expressions in EC tissues and in normal adjacent proliferative phase endometrium (PPE) tissues. The IHC staining results on the tissue microarrays (TMAs) with EC tissues and their clinical data were used to statistically analyze the prognostic roles of SPARC, E-cadherin, and EZH2. We found that the relative mRNA and protein levels of SPARC and E-cadherin were strongly downregulated, but EZH2 was markedly upregulated in EC compared with the PPE tissues. The abnormal SPARC, E-cadherin, and EZH2 expressions were correlated with the FIGO stage, grade, and poor clinical outcomes. In addition, we also found that a decreased expression of SPARC was related to histological type and lymph node metastasis, but decreased expression of E-cadherin was related to lymph node metastasis. Moreover, the SPARC expression was shown to be positively associated with E-cadherin, but EZH2 was negatively associated with SPARC or E-cadherin. Taken together, our findings improve the understanding of the SPARC, E-cadherin, and EZH2 expression levels in EC and suggest novel prognostic biomarkers for EC.