CXCL12, SCF, and eotaxin are prognostic serum biomarkers in gastric cancer

Gastric cancer is the fifth most common cancer worldwide and the fifth leading cause of cancer-related death. Its poor prognosis is primarily due to a late diagnosis and a lack of effective treatments for advanced disease. We aimed to identify new prognostic serum biomarkers to aid clinical decision-making. Our patient cohort consisted of 240 individuals who underwent surgery for histologically verified gastric adenocarcinoma in the Department of Surgery, Helsinki University Hospital, between 2000 and 2009. To determine serum protein concentrations of cytokines and growth factors, we utilized Bio-Rads premixed Bio-Plex Pro Human Cytokine 27-plex and 21-plex assay kits. Among the 48 biomarkers analyzed, three emerged as statistically significant prognostic markers for disease-specific survival using the Cox proportional hazards univariate analysis: C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 12 (CXCL12) (hazard ratio [HR] 0.39, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.23-0.63, p<0.001), stem cell factor (HR 0.38, 95%CI 0.19-0.77, p=0.007), and eotaxin (HR 0.57, 95%CI 0.37-0.89, p=0.013). Multivariate survival analysis revealed that, among the 48 biomarkers analyzed, CXCL12 and eotaxin served as independent prognostic markers among gastric cancer patients. The prognostic effect of inflammatory serum biomarkers in gastric cancer could provide new insights into the immunological microenvironment of disease.