[Expression of Maspin in bladder carcinoma and the relationship between Maspin and lymph node metastasis]

To examine the expression of Maspin in the bladder carcinoma, and to explore the relationship among Maspin expression, clinical pathology and lymph node metastasis.

The expression of Maspin in 72 bladder cancer tissues and 12 normal bladder tissues were detected by immunohistochemistry. Preoperative pelvic CT images and postoperative pathological results of lymph node metastasis in 72 bladder cancer patients were analyzed retrospectively. The sensibility, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were calculated, and the advantage for diagnosis of lymph node metastasis was compared between Maspin examination and CT scan.

1) The expression of Maspin in 72 bladder cancer tissues was significantly lower than that in the normal bladder tissues (P<0.05); 2) The expression of Maspin was obviously decreased with the progress in clinical stage, pathlogical grade and lymph node metastasis, with significant difference (all P<0.05); 3) There were 27 patients diagnosed as pelvic lymph node metastasis by CT scan, and the positive rate was 37.5% (27/72); there were 22 patients diagnosed as pelvic lymph node metastasis by pathological results, and the positive rate was 30.5% (22/72). The pathological diagnose for pelvic lymph node metastasis was the gold standard. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value for CT was 45.5%, 73.3%, 37.0%, and 66.7%, respectively; the sensibility, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value was 81.8%, 50%, 41.8% and 86.2% in the diagnosis of lymph node metastasis for the 72 bladder cancer cases by Maspin examination; the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive was 90.9%, 78.0%, 64.5% and 95.0% in the diagnose of lymph node metastasis by Maspin examination combined with CT scan.

The expression of Maspin in bladder cancer is significantly lower than that in normal bladder cancer, and a statistically significant correlation is also observed between Maspin expression and lymph node metastasis. Maspin maybe a valuable biomarker in diagnose of bladder cancer with lymph node metastasis. Maspin examination combined with CT scan has more advantage in the evaluation of bladder cancer with lymph node metastasis than Maspin or CT alone.