Abstract
Introduction: Podocalyxin-like 1 (PODXL) is an anti-adhesive transmembrane sialomucin whose expression on the membrane of tumor cells, indicates an integral role in tumor progression.
Objectives: To evaluate prognostic value of PODXL expression in colorectal carcinoma (CRC).
Materials and Methods: Fifty CRC cases were collected randomly from colectomy specimens. Sections were prepared from paraffin blocks and the slides immunohistochemically stained with PODXL. Correlations of PODXL expression with other clinicopathological variables and survival analysis were done.
Results: Fourteen percent of cases showed negative expression for PODXL and 86% showed positive expression. A statistically significant relationship was detected between high expression (+3, +4) and patients with stage IV CRC (P = 0.001), positive circumferential margin (P = 0.006), and patients with increased CEA after 6 cycles of chemotherapy (P = 0.002). No statistically significant relationship was detected between PODXL expression and lymph node metastasis (P = 0.30) or T stage (P = 0.60). A higher median overall survival among cases with negative or +1 PODXL was obtained compared to lower median survival among cases with +3 and +4 and the difference is highly significant statistically (P < 0.0001).
Conclusion: PODXL was a poor prognostic factor in CRC. PODXL can act as an attractive target for new strategies in treatment, and predicting prognosis in CRC.