Early decrease in serum amphiregulin or vascular endothelial growth factor levels predicts sorafenib efficacy in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Early decrease in serum amphiregulin or vascular endothelial growth factor levels predicts sorafenib efficacy in hepatocellular carcinoma. Oncol Rep. 2018 Dec 10;: Authors: Godin C, Bodeau S, Saidak Z, Louandre C, François C, Barbare JC, Coriat R, Galmiche A, Sauzay C Abstract Sorafenib is the standard of care for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, identifying secreted biomarkers that predict sorafenib efficacy in all HCC patients remains challenging. It was recently reported that sorafenib interferes with protein homeostasis and inhibits global translation in tumour cells. A likely consequence of this inhibition would be the interruption of autocrine loops. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of sorafenib on two growth factors implicated in autocrine loops and HCC tumour invasion: amphiregulin (AREG) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). ELISA, quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis, western blotting and a cytokine array were performed on HCC cell lines and the prognostic role of these two biomarkers in HCC patients was evaluated. Serum AREG and VEGF levels were assayed by ELISA in 55 patients with advanced HCC treated with sorafenib. It was observed that sorafenib decreased AREG, VEGF and cytokine expression at the transcriptional and post‑transcriptional levels. All HCC patients in our cohort had detectable concentrations of AREG and VEGF both at baseline ...
Source: Oncology Reports - Category: Cancer & Oncology Tags: Oncol Rep Source Type: research