CAUDAL TYPE HOMEOBOX 2 EXPRESSION AND PROGNOSTIC FACTORS IN PATIENTS WITH GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA

Abstract Background: The prognosis of cancer is affected by factors such as lymph node involvement, the degree of tumor invasion, and markers like caudal type homeobox 2. This study investigates the immunohistochemical expression of caudal type homeobox 2 in gastric cancer adenocarcinoma biopsies concerning gastric cancer prognostic factors. Material and methods: Tissue blocks from patients with gastric adenocarcinoma were used in this cross-sectional study. Demographic and clinicopathological data were extracted and recorded on a checklist from patients’ pathology reports. The expression of caudal type homeobox 2 was subsequently examined using immunohistochemistry. Results: In total, 80 patients with gastric adenocarcinoma were included, where 22 were female (27.5%). Caudal type homeobox 2 expression was reported as positive in 68 cases (85%) and negative in 12 cases (15%) of gastric adenocarcinoma biopsies. No significant correlation (p>0.05) was found between caudal type homeobox 2 expression and demographic and clinicopathological data, such as age, gender, and tumor grade (p>0.05). Conclusion: This study concludes that age, gender, and tumor grade are unreliable prognostic factors for Iranian patients with gastric adenocarcinoma.