Fusobacterium nucleatum tumor DNA levels are associated with survival in colorectal cancer patients

This study evaluatedF. nucleatum as a prognostic biomarker, by assessing its association with post-diagnosis survival from CRC. From September 2008 to April 2012 CRC patients (n = 190) were recruited from three hospitals within the Czech Republic.F. nucleatum DNA copies were measured in adjacent non-malignant and colorectal tumor tissues using quantitative real-time PCR. Cox Proportional Hazards (HR) models were applied to evaluate the association betweenF. nucleatum DNA and overall survival, adjusting for key confounders. Risk prediction modeling was conducted to evaluate the ability to predict survival based onF. nucleatum status. High, compared with low, levels ofF. nucleatum in colorectal tumor tissues were associated with poorer overall survival (adjusted HR 1.68, 95% CI 1.02 –2.77), which was slightly attenuated after additional adjustment for microsatellite instability status. However, inclusion ofF. nucleatum in risk prediction models did not improve the ability to identify patients who died beyond known prognostic factors such as disease pathology staging. Although the increased presence ofF. nucleatum was associated with poorer prognosis in CRC patients, this may have limited clinical relevance as a prognostic biomarker.
Source: European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases - Category: Microbiology Source Type: research