Prognostic significance of β-catenin nuclear expression in hepatocellular carcinoma

Background/Aims: There have been a few clinical reports about beta-catenin nuclear expression for hepatocellular carcinoma patients. However, the clinical significance of the nuclear expression has not been fully elucidated and remains to be controversial. Methodology: We performed immunohistochemical examinations using an anti-beta-catenin monoclonal antibody for 101 hepatocellular carcinoma patients who underwent curative hepatic resection. Background factors and the disease-free survival were compared between hepatocellular carcinomas with and without beta-catenin nuclear expression. The prognostic factors influencing disease-free survival were examined by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: beta-catenin nuclear expression was judged as positive in 24 (23.8%) and negative in 77 (76.2%). Representative 3 hepatocellular carcinomas with beta-catenin nuclear expression showed the protein accumulation by Western blotting analysis. The clinicopathological analysis proved that vascular invasion was less prevalent in hepatocellular carcinomas with beta-catenin nuclear expression than in those without the expression (p = 0.034). Hepatocellular carcinoma patients with beta-catenin nuclear expression had a longer disease-free survival than patients without the expression (p = 0.035). Multivariate analysis proved that beta-catenin nuclear expression was selected as one of the independent factors related to disease-free survival (p = 0.0054). Conclusions: Our study demonstrated that beta-catenin nuclear expression is valuable as a prognostic factor for hepatocellular carcinoma patients who under-went hepatic resection.