Both gene expression for orotate phosphoribosyltransferase and its ratio to dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase influence outcome following fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy for metastatic colorectal cancer
2003

Gene Expression and Chemotherapy Response in Colorectal Cancer

Sample size: 37 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Ichikawa W, Uetake H, Shirota Y, Yamada H, Takahashi T, Nihei Z, Sugihara K, Sasaki Y, Hirayama R

Primary Institution: Tokyo Medical and Dental University

Hypothesis

The expression levels of orotate phosphoribosyltransferase and dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase can predict outcomes in metastatic colorectal cancer patients treated with fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy.

Conclusion

Higher levels of orotate phosphoribosyltransferase expression are associated with better response and survival rates in patients undergoing chemotherapy for metastatic colorectal cancer.

Supporting Evidence

  • Patients with high OPRT expression had a median survival of 12.5 months compared to 8.5 months for those with low expression.
  • Responding tumors had statistically higher OPRT gene expression than nonresponding tumors.
  • The study found a significant correlation between OPRT expression and both response and survival in patients treated with UFT and LV.

Takeaway

This study found that measuring certain genes in cancer can help doctors predict how well a treatment will work.

Methodology

The study evaluated gene expressions in tumor samples from patients treated with UFT and LV chemotherapy, analyzing their correlation with treatment response and survival.

Potential Biases

Potential biases may arise from the small sample size and retrospective design.

Limitations

The study is retrospective and involved a limited number of patients.

Participant Demographics

Median age of participants was 62 years, with a range from 38 to 80 years.

Statistical Information

P-Value

0.0008

Confidence Interval

95% confidence interval, 18.0–49.8%

Statistical Significance

p<0.05

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1038/sj.bjc.6601335

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