lncRNA TUG1 Expression in NSCLC and Its Clinical Significance

This study was aimed at exploring the expression of lncRNA TUG1 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and analyzing the correlations between TUG1 expression and an NSCLC patient's clinical and pathological parameters and prognosis.

This study included 132 NSCLC patients who were admitted between January 2012 and May 2013 in our hospital. Expression levels of TUG1 expression in the resected cancer tissue and normal adjacent tissue (NAT) were assessed using the ISH and RT-qPCR assays to analyze the correlations between TUG1 expression in NSCLC tissue and an NSCLC patient's clinical and pathological parameters and prognosis.

Compared to NAT, NSCLC tissue has a lower expression level of TUG1. The TUG1 expression further decreases as NSCLC progressed to a later stage, indicating a statistically significant difference (p < 0.01 or p < 0.001). High TUG1 expression is not strongly associated with age, gender, smoking history, or the degree of differentiation of NSCLC (p > 0.05) but exhibits close correlations with tumor size, TNM stage, and lymph node metastasis (p < 0.05). Patients with a higher level of TUG1 expression have a higher survival rate and a longer survival time than those with lower TUG1 expression. The inter-group differences were statistically significant (p < 0.05).

Considering TUG1 presence in the development and progression of NSCLC, hopefully, it can be used as a tumor marker in the diagnostic workup of patients with NSCLC.