Could Galectin 3 Be a Good Prognostic Factor in Endometrial Cancer?

Abstract

Galectin 3 is a modulator of several basic biological functions. It may be involved in the development of obesity and type 2 diabetes—risk factors of endometrial cancer. The study involved 144 patients, after abrasion due to postmenopausal bleeding. Galectin 3 concentrations were quantified in serum by multiplex fluorescent bead-based immunoassays. Median serum galectin 3 concentrations revealed significant differences between FIGO III and IV vs. FIGO I and II patients. Statistically higher concentrations were reported for patients with lymph node metastases compared to patients without it (p = 0.001) as well as in patients with lymphovascular space invasion compared to patients without LVSI (p = 0.02). No statistically significant differences were observed for median of galectin 3 levels depending on the surgical procedure (laparoscopy vs. laparotomy, p = 0.0608). Patients with galectin 3 levels exceeding the median value were characterized by overall survival being shorter by 11.9 months. High levels of galectin 3 were correlated with shorter disease-free survival, the difference is up to 14.8 months. Galectin 3 can be an independent prognostic factor in patients with endometrial cancer. Among the recognized prognostic factors and the concentrations of the galectin 3 marker at the adopted time points, the univariate analysis showed a significant effect of staging, grading, and cutoff galectin 3 on the OS. For multivariate analysis, the galectin 3 cutoff point had the greatest significant impact on OS.