Association Between CKAP4 Expression and Poor Prognosis in Patients with Bladder Cancer Treated with Radical...

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Biomarker Discovery
• Cancer Research

Background:

• Cytoskeleton-associated protein 4 (CKAP4) is implicated in various cancers, but its role in bladder cancer (BCa) prognosis is not well-defined.
• Radical cystectomy (RC) is a standard treatment for BCa, necessitating reliable prognostic markers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the expression of CKAP4 in both tumor cells (CKAP4-1) and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CKAP4-2) in BCa patients post-RC.
• To determine the association of CKAP4 expression with tumor aggressiveness and patient outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Immunohistochemistry was used to assess CKAP4 expression in 86 RC specimens.
• CKAP4-1 positivity was defined by cytoplasmic staining in cancer cells (≥5% with moderate intensity).
• CKAP4-2 positivity was determined by the abundance of CKAP4-positive cancer-associated fibroblasts in the tumor stroma.

Main Results:

• CKAP4-1 and CKAP4-2 were detected in 61.6% and 39.5% of patients, respectively.
• CKAP4-1 positivity correlated with significantly shorter cancer-specific survival and recurrence-free survival (RFS).
• Multivariate analysis identified CKAP4-1 positivity as an independent predictor of RFS (HR: 2.09, p=0.041).

Conclusions:

• CKAP4 expression in bladder cancer tumor cells (CKAP4-1) shows prognostic significance.
• CKAP4 may serve as a valuable prognostic biomarker for bladder cancer patients undergoing radical cystectomy.