Clinical significance of methylation of E-cadherin and p14ARF gene promoters in skin squamous cell carcinoma tissues

Epigenetic regulation of genes by DNA methylation contributes to cancer. The present study sought to identify methylation changes in the promoters of E-cadherin and p14ARF, two genes with potential cancer roles promoting in skin squamous cell carcinoma. Skin squamous cell carcinoma specimens were collected from 40 patients and normal skin tissues were collected from 30 individuals as controls. Promoter methylation was detected for E-cadherin and p14ARF by methylation-specific PCR. Correlations between E-cadherin or p14ARF methylation and clinicopathological parameters were analyzed by the Spearman rank test. Methylation of E-cadherin (37.5%) and p14ARF (60.0%) was significantly more common in skin squamous cell carcinoma than in normal skin tissue (10.0 and 6.7%, respectively; P < 0.05). Additionally, E-cadherin and p14ARF methylation were positively correlated within skin squamous cell carcinoma (r = 0.422, P = 0.007). Furthermore, methylation of these gene promoters in skin squamous cell carcinoma was correlated with differentiation, lymph node metastasis, and clinical stage (P < 0.05). Aberrant methylation in promoters of E-cadherin and p14ARF may promote occurrence and progression of skin squamous cell carcinoma.