Background/aim: Angiogenesis plays a key role in tumour growth and metastasis. Expression of angiogenic factors has been suggested as a marker for tumour malignity, and it may help to identify those patients with a poorer prognosis, aiding patient stratification for more aggressive and/or angiogenesis-targeted therapy. The present study examines the relationship between concentration of circulating angiogenic factors and clinical tumour criteria as well as patient survival.
Patients and methods: A total of 125 patients with cervical cancer who underwent follow-up examinations between October 2002 and June 2005 were enrolled, and serum samples were examined for angiogenin, endoglin and endostatin by means of an ELISA. Concentrations were statistically correlated with clinical and outcome parameters.
Results: Concentrations of all examined angiogenic factors were on average within the manufacturer-provided normal range. Both angiogenin and endostatin increased from non-invasive tumours through invasive lesions to recurrent disease, and endoglin showed an equally steady inverse trend; differences between non-invasive, invasive and recurrent stages of the disease were statistically significant. However it was not possible to determine a sufficiently selective cut-off point for either factor by receiver operating characteristic analysis, and there was no significant correlation with survival.
Conclusion: Angiogenic factors angiogenin, endoglin and endostatin show a definite relationship with disease stage in uterine cervical cancer, but are presently not suitable for use in risk stratification.