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Reduction in ELOVL2 methylation following curative surgery in lung cancer patients: an observational study
Peixian Li1,2, Zhuxing Chen1, Xiaowen Zhang1
1Pulmonary Nodule Surgical Department, The First People's Hospital of Foshan, Foshan, China.
Background:
While tumors are known to accelerate epigenetic aging, it remains unclear whether curative surgery can reverse this effect in early-stage lung cancer patients. ELOVL2 methylation is a well-established biomarker of epigenetic age, yet its dynamics following lung cancer resection have not been characterized.
Results:
We prospectively analyzed ELOVL2 methylation in peripheral blood from 242 patients with stage I lung cancer before and three months after curative surgery using droplet digital PCR. Postoperative methylation levels were significantly reduced compared to preoperative values (p < 0.0001). The reduction in methylation was more pronounced in female patients, whereas classification accuracy was lower in older individuals.
Significance:
Our findings show that curative surgery is associated with a decrease in ELOVL2 methylation-a marker of epigenetic aging-in early-stage lung cancer patients. This observation warrants further investigation.
