@Article{Diakowska2011,
journal="Contemporary Oncology/Współczesna Onkologia",
issn="1428-2526",
volume="15",
number="3",
year="2011",
title="Elevated levels of serum transforming growth factor-β 1 in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients",
abstract="  Background  : Transforming growth factor- β 1 (TGF- β 1) is a multifunctional cytokine involved in cancer development. The diagnostic significance of serum levels of transforming growth factor- β 1 (sTGF- β 1) in the oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unclear. The aim of the study was to analyze sTGF- β 1 concentrations in ESCC patients. The sTGF- β 1 levels were assessed according to the clinical parameters in cancer patients. We determined sTGF- β 1 concentrations in ESCC patients before and after oesophagectomy. The correlation between sTGF- β 1 and serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (sVEGF-A) was examined as well.       Material and methods:   The study included 115 patients with ESCC and 57 healthy controls. Concentrations of sTGF- β 1 were measured by ELISA tests and were compared with clinical parameters of cancer patients. Serum samples for sTGF- β 1 evaluation 3 months after surgical resection were available in 41 cases.       Results  : Serum TGF- β 1 level was significantly higher in ESCC compared to the control group (p < 0.001). Serum levels of TGF- β 1 positively correlated with the depth of tumour invasion (p = 0.042). There were no differences in sTGF- β 1 levels in patients stratified by the presence of regional and distant metastases and stage of cancer progression. The level of sTGF- β 1 was significantly lower in ESCC patients after oesophagectomy than before surgical treatment (p = 0.002). A positive correlation between sTGF- β 1 and sVEGF-A (p = 0.017) was observed.",
author="Diakowska, Dorota
and Lewandowski, Andrzej
and Markocka-Mączka, Krystyna
and Grabowski, Krzysztof",
pages="137--141",
doi="10.5114/wo.2011.23002",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.5114/wo.2011.23002"
}