Open Access

High expression of FOXO3 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

  • Authors:
    • Shu‑Shu Song
    • Jia‑Fu Ying
    • You‑Ni Zhang
    • Hong‑Ying Pan
    • Xiang‑Lei He
    • Zhi‑Ming Hu
    • Hui‑Ju Wang
    • Xiao‑Bing Dou
    • Xiao‑Zhou Mou
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: March 3, 2020     https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2020.11430
  • Pages: 3181-3188
  • Copyright: © Song et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

The role of forkhead box O3 (FOXO3) as a tumor suppressor gene and its association with the human lifespan is well documented. However, several studies have indicated that high expression of FOXO3 is also significantly associated with tumorigenesis. The aim of the present study was to determine the clinical significance of FOXO3 in the development and prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). mRNA expression data of FOXO3 from The Cancer Genome Atlas database was analyzed through the UALCAN online tool to compare the expression of FOXO3 between HCC and normal liver tissues. Subsequently, the expression of FOXO3 at the protein level was investigated via immunohistochemical staining of 314 HCC and 150 non‑cancerous liver tissue samples. The association between protein expression and clinicopathological parameters was analyzed using the χ2 test, and the effect of FOXO3 expression on survival was assessed via Kaplan‑Meier analysis. The expression of FOXO3 mRNA was significantly higher in HCC in comparison with healthy tissues. High FOXO3 protein expression was revealed in 43/150 non‑cancerous liver tissues, and in 238/314 HCC samples. A significant association was demonstrated between FOXO3 expression and metastasis, Tumor‑Node‑Metastasis stage, Edmondson grade, α‑fetoprotein level and overall survival. In conclusion, the high expression of FOXO3 predicts a poor prognosis in patients with HCC, indicating this protein as a potential therapeutic target in HCC.
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April-2020
Volume 19 Issue 4

Print ISSN: 1792-1074
Online ISSN:1792-1082

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Spandidos Publications style
Song SS, Ying JF, Zhang YN, Pan HY, He XL, Hu ZM, Wang HJ, Dou XB and Mou XZ: High expression of FOXO3 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Oncol Lett 19: 3181-3188, 2020
APA
Song, S., Ying, J., Zhang, Y., Pan, H., He, X., Hu, Z. ... Mou, X. (2020). High expression of FOXO3 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Oncology Letters, 19, 3181-3188. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2020.11430
MLA
Song, S., Ying, J., Zhang, Y., Pan, H., He, X., Hu, Z., Wang, H., Dou, X., Mou, X."High expression of FOXO3 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma". Oncology Letters 19.4 (2020): 3181-3188.
Chicago
Song, S., Ying, J., Zhang, Y., Pan, H., He, X., Hu, Z., Wang, H., Dou, X., Mou, X."High expression of FOXO3 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma". Oncology Letters 19, no. 4 (2020): 3181-3188. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2020.11430