The expression of human epididymis protein 4 and cyclindependent kinase inhibitor p27Kip1 in human ovarian carcinoma

Background: Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27^Kip1 is a new class of tumor suppressor in a dosage dependent manner to control cell cycle progression. Human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) is a potentially useful biomarker for ovarian carcinoma, comparable with cancer antigen 125 in identifying women with ovarian cancer, both localized and advanced. However, the prognostic significance of p27^Kip1 and HE4 in ovarian cancer is unclear.

Objective: Investigate the expression of p27^Kip1 and HE4 in the progression of human ovarian cancer.

Material and method: Immunohistochemical analysis was performed on formalin-fixed paraffin sections of 61 specimens. The association between HE4 and p27^Kip1expression and clinicopathological features was analyzed using χ²-test. For analysis of survival data, Kaplan-Meier curves were constructed, and the log-rank test was performed.

Results: The expression of p27^Kip1 negatively related with HE4 expression, but it correlated significantly with lymph nodes. On the other hand, HE4 expression correlated significantly with disease stage and lymph nodes. Kaplan-Meier analysis of the survival curves of p27^Kip1 and HE4 revealed a highly significant separation between low vs. high expressers in ovarian carcinoma.

Conclusion: Expression of HE4 was up-regulated significantly in human ovarian carcinoma. Overexpression of HE4 might be responsible for oncogenesis and development of ovarian carcinoma. HE4 and p27^Kip1 may be of prognostic significance in human ovarian cancer.