Expression and prognostic value of Cripto-1 in early non-small cell lung cancer.

OBJECTIVE: We aim to explore the expression of Cripto-1 (CR-1) protein in patients with early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS: We investigated CR-1 expression status in specimens obtained from 240 patients with resected NSCLC and 30 cases of para-carcinous normal lung tissues. RESULTS: Compared with normal lung tissue, the positive expression of CR-1 protein in NSCLC was significantly increased (p < 0.005). Cox multivariate regression analysis showed that the expression of CR-1 protein was an independent prognostic factor for early stage NSCLC (p = 0.002). CONCLUSION: Detecting CR-1 protein can predict the prognosis and recurrence in patients with NSCLC.