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Immunohistochemical Expression of Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor and Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptors 1 and 2 in the Pathogenesis of Lung Cancer

Authors' Affiliations: Departments of ¹ Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, ² Biostatistics, and ³ Pathology, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas

Requests for reprints: Reuben Lotan, Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Unit 432, 1515 Holcombe Boulevard, Houston, TX 77030. Phone: 713-792-8467; Fax: 713-745-5656; E-mail: rlotan{at}mdanderson.org.

Purpose: To identify the patterns of protein expression of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and FGF receptors 1 and 2 in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) and their role in the early pathogenesis of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the lung.

Experimental Design: Archived tissue from NSCLC (adenocarcinoma and SCC; n = 321) and adjacent bronchial epithelial specimens (n = 426) were analyzed for the immunohistochemical expression of bFGF, FGFR1, and FGFR2, and the findings were correlated with clinicopathologic features of the patients.

Results: High expression of bFGF, FGFR1, and FGFR2 was shown in most NSCLC tumors. The pattern of expression for all markers varied according to tumor histologic type and cellular localization. Cytoplasmic expression scores were significantly higher in tumors than in normal epithelia. Nuclear bFGF (P = 0.03) and FGFR1 (P = 0.02) levels were significantly higher in women than in men. Although cytoplasmic FGFR1 expression was significantly higher (P = 0.002) in ever smokers than in never smokers, nuclear FGFR1 (P = 0.0001) and FGFR2 (P = 0.003) expression was significantly higher in never smokers. Different prognostic patterns for the expression of these markers were detected for both NSCLC histologic types. Dysplastic changes showed significantly higher expression of all markers compared with squamous metaplasia.

Conclusions: bFGF, FGFR1, and FGFR2 are frequently overexpressed in SCC and adenocarcinoma of the lung. bFGF signaling pathway activation may be an early phenomenon in the pathogenesis of SCC and thus an attractive novel target for lung cancer chemopreventive and therapeutic strategies.