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Urbarova I, Skogholt AH, Sun YQ, Mai XM, Grønberg BH, Sandanger TM, Sætrom P, Nøst TH. Increased expression of individual genes in whole blood is associated with late-stage lung cancer at and close to diagnosis. Sci Rep 2023; 13:20760. [PMID: 38007577 PMCID: PMC10676373 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-48216-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Lung cancer (LC) mortality rates are still increasing globally. As survival is linked to stage, there is a need to identify markers for earlier LC diagnosis and individualized treatment. The whole blood transcriptome of LC patients represents a source of potential LC biomarkers. We compared expression of > 60,000 genes in whole blood specimens taken from LC cases at diagnosis (n = 128) and controls (n = 62) using genome-wide RNA sequencing, and identified 14 candidate genes associated with LC. High expression of ANXA3, ARG1 and HP was strongly associated with lower survival in late-stage LC cases (hazard ratios (HRs) = 2.81, 2.16 and 2.54, respectively). We validated these markers in two independent population-based studies with pre-diagnostic whole blood specimens taken up to eight years prior to LC diagnosis (n = 163 cases, 184 matched controls). ANXA3 and ARG1 expression was strongly associated with LC in these specimens, especially with late-stage LC within two years of diagnosis (odds ratios (ORs) = 3.47 and 5.00, respectively). Additionally, blood CD4 T cells, NK cells and neutrophils were associated with LC at diagnosis and improved LC discriminative ability beyond candidate genes. Our results indicate that in whole blood, increased expression levels of ANXA3, ARG1 and HP are diagnostic and prognostic markers of late-stage LC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilona Urbarova
- Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
| | - Anne Heidi Skogholt
- Department of Public Health and Nursing, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Yi-Qian Sun
- Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- Department of Pathology, Clinic of Laboratory Medicine, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
- Center for Oral Health Services and Research Mid-Norway (TkMidt), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Xiao-Mei Mai
- Department of Public Health and Nursing, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Bjørn Henning Grønberg
- Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- Department of Oncology, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Torkjel Manning Sandanger
- Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Pål Sætrom
- Department of Public Health and Nursing, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- Department of Oncology, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
- Bioinformatics Core Facility, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Therese Haugdahl Nøst
- Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
- Department of Public Health and Nursing, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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Čelešnik H, Potočnik U. Peripheral Blood Transcriptome in Breast Cancer Patients as a Source of Less Invasive Immune Biomarkers for Personalized Medicine, and Implications for Triple Negative Breast Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14030591. [PMID: 35158858 PMCID: PMC8833511 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14030591] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2021] [Revised: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive and heterogeneous breast cancer (BC) type which is difficult to treat and accompanied by disease recurrence. A better understanding of TNBC and the identification of novel biomarkers is needed to facilitate clinical decisions. Immune-related biomarkers are of particular interest, since immune responses play an important role in BC outcome. Transcriptome studies of peripheral blood cells can help us to understand the systemic immune responses to cancer cells and the mechanisms underlying cancer initiation and progression. They enable the identification of novel immune biomarkers for early cancer detection and personalized BC management and may bring forward new immunotherapy options. Recent transcriptome analyses of peripheral blood cells have delineated novel BC-patient immune subgroups. This categorization has implications for cancer prognosis, the identification of patients likely to benefit from immunotherapy, and treatment efficacy monitoring. Additionally, transcriptome studies have identified TNBC-enriched blood transcriptional signatures that can differentiate TNBC from other classical BC subtypes. Abstract Transcriptome studies of peripheral blood cells can advance our understanding of the systemic immune response to the presence of cancer and the mechanisms underlying cancer onset and progression. This enables the identification of novel minimally invasive immune biomarkers for early cancer detection and personalized cancer management and may bring forward new immunotherapy options. Recent blood gene expression analyses in breast cancer (BC) identified distinct patient subtypes that differed in the immune reaction to cancer and were distinct from the clinical BC subtypes, which are categorized based on expression of specific receptors on tumor cells. Introducing new BC subtypes based on peripheral blood gene expression profiles may be appropriate, since it may assist in BC prognosis, the identification of patients likely to benefit from immunotherapy, and treatment efficacy monitoring. Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive, heterogeneous, and difficult-to-treat disease, and identification of novel biomarkers for this BC is crucial for clinical decision-making. A few studies have reported TNBC-enriched blood transcriptional signatures, mostly related to strong inflammation and augmentation of altered immune signaling, that can differentiate TNBC from other classical BC subtypes and facilitate diagnosis. Future research is geared toward transitioning from expression signatures in unfractionated blood cells to those in immune cell subpopulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Čelešnik
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Smetanova Ulica 17, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia;
- Center for Human Genetics & Pharmacogenomics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Taborska Ulica 8, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia
| | - Uroš Potočnik
- Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Smetanova Ulica 17, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia;
- Center for Human Genetics & Pharmacogenomics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Maribor, Taborska Ulica 8, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia
- Department for Science and Research, University Medical Centre Maribor, Ljubljanska Ulica 5, 2000 Maribor, Slovenia
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +386-2-330-5874
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