Plasma levels of vascular endothelial growth factor in patients with acromegaly

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is known to be linked to retinal ischemia-associated neovascularization. It was recently found that insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) enhances VEGF gene expression. In this study we investigated whether plasma VEGF levels are increased in patients with acromegaly, a disease in which plasma IGF-I levels are elevated, and whether plasma VEGF levels are correlated with plasma IGF-I levels in these patients. We retrospectively analyzed plasma samples from 13 active acromegalic patients (7 males and 6 females) aged 33 to 66 years, with a mean age of 52.3+/-10.8 years. The results were compared with plasma VEGF levels in 16 age- and sex-matched, healthy subjects (9 males and 7 females) aged 22 to 66 years, with a mean age of 52.4+/-11.5 years. Plasma VEGF levels were not higher in the acromegalic patients than in the healthy subjects (253+/-61 vs. 197+/-30 pg/mL, P= 0.39). In 5 patients plasma VEGF levels were rather slightly increased after pituitary adenomectomy while one patient showed a reduced plasma VEGF level. In addition there was no correlation between plasma VEGF and GH or IGF-I levels. These data indicate that plasma VEGF levels are not increased in patients with acromegaly and that serum VEGF may play a less important role in the neovascularization in the carcinogenesis and/or disturbances of the cardiovascular system in patients with acromegaly.