Am J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg | Volume 6, Issue 4 | Research Article | Open Access

The Prognostic Value of Ezrin Expressed on Circulating Tumor Cells in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Yang J^1,2, Jiang C³, Jia Q^1,2, Tan Y^1,2 and Tang F^1,2*

¹Hunan Key Laboratory of Oncotarget Gene, Hunan Cancer Hospital and the Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China ²Department of Clinical Laboratory, Hunan Cancer Hospital, Changsha, China ³Haikou Hospital of Xiangya Medical College, Central South University, Haikou, China

^*Correspondance to: Tang F 

Fulltext PDF

Abstract

Background and Purpose: This study focused on exploring the clinical significance of Ezrin on Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs) in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC) patients. Materials and Methods: The confirmed NPC patients were enrolled in this study, and the patients were followed-up for 6 to 28 months after therapy. CTCs from pre- and post-therapy NPC patients were captured, and Ezrin gene expressed on CTCs was detected by RNA-in situ hybridization. Simultaneously, the concentrations of Epstein-Barr (EBV) DNA and VCA-IgA in NPC patients were also detected, and the associations of Ezrin on CTCs with EBV DNA and VCA-IgA were analyzed. The correlations of CTCs count, cell types and Ezrin with the various clinical stages and metastasis of NPC were analyzed. A comparative analysis of CTCs and Ezrin levels from NPC patients at pre- and post-therapy was conducted. Results: The proportion of biphenotypic CTCs was increased in NPC patients at the advanced stage compared to patients at the early stage. Ezrin in biphenotypic CTCs was higher than that in the epithelial and mesenchymal CTCs. Ezrin positive rates were associated with NPC stages, the advanced patients had higher Ezrin rates than the early ones. After being effectively treated, Ezrin Ezrin+ CTCs count and VCA-IgA. Conclusion: Ezrin expression in CTCs is positively associated with NPC progress, and it decreases after effective therapy.This imply that Ezrin in CTCs may be a novel prognostic biomarker for NPC
patients.

Keywords:

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma; CTCs; Ezrin; Epstein-Barr virus

Citation:

Yang J, Jiang C, Jia Q, Tan Y, Tang F. The Prognostic Value of Ezrin Expressed on Circulating Tumor Cells in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma. Am J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2023;6(4):1240..