Background:Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) exhibit considerable heterogeneity, complicating the prediction of disease progression and treatment response. Consequently, researchers are actively investigating reliable biomarkers to forecast disease trajectories and inform therapeutic decisions. This study examines the role of BAG3, a protein involved in cell survival and stress response, as a potential predictive marker in HNSCC. The objective is to analyze BAG3 expression across various HNSCC types and correlate it with disease-free survival (DFS), aiming to elucidate the influence of BAG3 positivity on cancer progression.Methods:A multi-institutional retrospective study was conducted by analyzing BAG3 expression by immunohistochemistry in 104 tissue samples from patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The data were then correlated with DFS to assess the impact of BAG3 positivity on prognosis.Results:Immunohistochemical analysis of primary tumor samples collected from therapy-naive patients showed that BAG3 positivity was widespread across different head and neck cancer sites, with no significant correlation to sex, smoking status, HPV infection, tumor location, grade, or TNM parameters. However, BAG3 high positive patients had shorter DFS (median 23.2 months) compared to BAG3-negative patients (median 31.3 months). Cox analysis revealed that BAG3 high expression by IHC was associated with a more than 3-fold increased risk of disease recurrence.Conclusions: This study is the first to explore BAG3 as a biomarker for HNSCC recurrence. While preliminary findings suggest a link between BAG3 positivity and increased recurrence risk, further research is needed to validate these results. Prospective studies could help establish BAG3’s prognostic value and potentially lead to more personalized treatment approaches for HNSCC.
背景：头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）具有显著的异质性，这使得疾病进展和治疗反应的预测变得复杂。因此，研究人员正积极探寻可靠的生物标志物以预测疾病轨迹并指导治疗决策。本研究探讨了BAG3蛋白（一种参与细胞存活和应激反应的蛋白）作为HNSCC潜在预测标志物的作用。目的是分析BAG3在不同类型HNSCC中的表达情况，并将其与无病生存期（DFS）相关联，旨在阐明BAG3阳性对癌症进展的影响。 方法：通过一项多机构回顾性研究，对104例头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）患者的组织样本进行免疫组织化学分析，检测BAG3表达。随后将数据与DFS进行关联分析，以评估BAG3阳性对预后的影响。 结果：对初治患者原发肿瘤样本的免疫组化分析显示，BAG3阳性在不同头颈部癌部位广泛存在，且与性别、吸烟状况、HPV感染、肿瘤位置、分级或TNM参数无显著相关性。然而，与BAG3阴性患者（中位DFS 31.3个月）相比，BAG3高阳性患者的DFS更短（中位23.2个月）。Cox分析显示，免疫组化检测的BAG3高表达与疾病复发风险增加超过3倍相关。 结论：本研究首次探讨了BAG3作为HNSCC复发生物标志物的价值。虽然初步发现提示BAG3阳性与复发风险增加存在关联，但仍需进一步研究验证这些结果。前瞻性研究可能有助于确立BAG3的预后价值，并有望为HNSCC带来更个性化的治疗方法。
BAG3 Positivity as Prognostic Marker in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家