Independent prognostic value of serum hepatocyte growth factor in bladder cancer

We retrospectively investigated whether the level of serum hepatocyte growth factor could predict the prognosis and extent of transitional-cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder.

Serum samples were collected from 113 patients with bladder cancer and from 200 healthy controls. Of the 113 patients, 59 had superficial bladder cancer and 54 had muscle-invasive cancer. Thirteen bladder cancer tissues (eight superficial and five muscle-invasive) were also collected. The levels of hepatocyte growth factor in the serum and tissues of these individuals were measured by enzyme-linked immunoadsorbent assay using hepatocyte growth factor antibodies.

The levels of hepatocyte growth factor in the serum and tissues of patients with muscle-invasive cancer were significantly higher than those of patients with superficial bladder cancer (P <.0001 and P =.0054, respectively). The degree of elevation above the normal level of serum hepatocyte growth factor of the former (61.1%) was significantly higher than that of the latter (8.4%; P <.0001). The elevation was highest in patients with visceral metastasis (93.3%). Among patients with superficial bladder cancer, the overall survival rate of those with low levels of serum hepatocyte growth factor was significantly greater than that of those with high levels (P =.005). Among patients with minimally invasive bladder cancer, the disease-free and overall survival rates of those with high levels of serum hepatocyte growth factor were significantly lower than the same rates of those with low levels (P <.001 and P =.0028, respectively).

Our study suggests that the level of hepatocyte growth factor in serum could be a predictor of patient survival and extent of bladder cancer.