Ten-Year Recurrence Outcomes in Early Stage and Early Onset Colon Cancer and the Expression Profiles of MicroRNAs and Cancer Stem Cell Markers in These Tumors

Abstract

Objective: We hypothesized that microRNAs (miRNAs) might be involved in tumor development by critically regulating cancer stem cell (CSC) markers in the early stages of colon cancer (eCC). This study aimed to determine the expression profiles of miRNAs in CSC-positive eCC patients and examine their associations with recurrence. Materials and Methods: We analyzed CD133, LGR5 and SOX2 expression profiles to determine CSC status in 30 eCC specimens. Then, using the results of RT2 miRNA PCR custom arrays, we evaluated the expression profiles of 38 miRNAs in CSC-positive eCC patients. Results: Recurrence occurred in 5 patients within ten years after surgery. We determined down-regulation of miR-125b and up-regulation of miR-135b were significant in CSC-positive eCC patients (p=0.021, p=0.001, respectively). We found that low expression of miR-125b was associated with recurrence in eCC (p=0.0022). Conclusions: We suggest that recurrence might be prevented by increasing the expression of miR-125b in eCC.