EXPRESSION OF MIRNA-21 IN OESOPHAGEAL CANCER AND ITS CORRELATION WITH THE PATHOLOGICAL FEATURES AND PROGNOSIS OF CANCER

Objectives: To investigate the expression of miRNA-21 in oesophageal cancer and its correlation with the pathological features and prognosis of cancer. Methods: A total of 69 patients confirmed with oesophageal carcinoma in our from February 2012 to November 2014 were enrolled in the study. The cancer tissue and the normal adjacent tissue were collected. The expression levels of miRNA-21 in cancer tissue and the normal adjacent tissue were determined by RT-PCR. The correlation between miRNA-21 and the pathological features and prognosis was determined. Results: The relative expression level if miRNA-21 was 4.59 +/- 0.33 in cancer tissue and 3.08 +/- 0.11 in adjacent tissues, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). The expression levels of miRNA-21 were different in oesophageal cancer tissues in patients with various clinical stages, and the difference was statistically (P<0.05). MicroRNA-21 expression level and clinical stage were independent prognostic factors for patients with oesophageal cancer. The survival time was much shorter in the patients with high expression of miRNA-21 that in those with low expression on miRNA-21 (P<0.05). Conclusions: The expression of miRNA-21 shows a rising trend in oesophageal cancer tissue, and its expression is correlated with the clinical stage and prognosis of the tumour.