Purpose: We aimed to detect expression changes of miRNA-203 in the serum of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients before and after transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), and to explore the clinical significance in influencing the prognosis of HCC.
Methods: Serum levels of miRNA-203 in HCC patients (n=100) and healthy subjects (n=100) were detected by RT-PCR. The relationship between miRNA-203 level and baseline characteristics of HCC was analyzed by Pearson correlation test. The prognostic potentials of miRNA-203 in HCC were evaluated by Kaplan-Meier method. Changes in miRNA-203 level before and after TACE in HCC patients were determined. Cox regression model was applied for analyzing potential factors that may influence the prognosis in HCC.
Results: MiRNA-203 was lowly expressed in the serum of HCC patients than in controls. Its level was closely linked to differentiation, metastasis and TNM stage. Serum level of miRNA-203 in HCC patients was upregulated following TACE. Overall survival was better in HCC patients expressing high level of miRNA-203 at post-TACE. Age (over 60 years), large tumor size (≥ 5 cm), metastasis and stage III-IV were risk factors of HCC death, while highly expressed miRNA-203 was a favorable factor.
Conclusions: Serum level of miRNA-203 is downregulated in HCC patients, which is upregulated following TACE. MiRNA-203 can be used to evaluate the prognosis in TACE-treated HCC patients.