[Correlation between expression of RB protein and prognosis of gastric cancer]

In this study, the expression of retinoblastoma (RB) protein was investigated immunohistochemically in 94 patients with gastric cancer. Overexpression of RB was detected in 48 tumors (51.1%). There was no significant association among the expression of RB, histologic type, lymph node metastasis, and liver metastasis. However, a significant difference was noted with respect to depth of invasion and peritoneal metastases. Among 94 patients, peritoneal metastases were observed in 11 patients. RB expression was detected in only two of these cases with peritoneal metastases, which was significantly less than those without peritoneal metastases. In relation to prognosis, patients with RB-positive tumors had a significantly better prognosis than those with RB-negative tumors. In conclusion, this study suggested that expression of RB has a prognostic value in gastric cancer.