Background/aims: We sought to reveal the status of phosphorylated 4E-binding protein 1 (p-4ebp1) expression in Chinese gastric cancer patients and its correlation with tumor prognosis.
Methodology: Tissue microarray blocks containing gastric cancer tissue and matched noncancerous gastric tissue specimens from 286 patients were constructed. The expression of 4E-binding protein 1 (4ebp1) and p-4ebp1 of these specimens was analyzed using immunohistochemical studies.
Results: The expression rates of 4ebp1 and p-4ebp1 in gastric cancer were 68.5% (196 of 286) and 49.7% (142 of 286) respectively. The expression of 4ebp1 was correlated with node metastasis and poor differentiation, while the expression of p-4ebp1 was correlated with tumor size, node metastasis and TNM stage. p-4ebp1 overexpression has a significant inverse correlation with median survival time.
Conclusions: p-4ebp1 expression is correlated with later TNM stage and is a prognostic factor of survival time after surgery.