Kanzaki R, et al. - This study was designed to determine the significance of stromal PDGFR-β expression in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in patients undergoing pre-operative chemo- or chemo-radiotherapy. A negative association between stromal PDGFR-β expression, and disease-free survival rate (DFS) and disease-specific survival rate (DSS) was noted in these NSCLC patients.

Methods

• Patients with NSCLC undergoing pre-operative chemo- or chemo-radiotherapy were evaluated between 1996 and 2014 for expression of stromal PDGFR-β by immunohistochemistry using resected specimens.
• The associations between stromal PDGFR-β expression and survival post-operatively were determined.
• As a chemo-naïve control group, 43 patients who underwent surgery without pre-operative treatment in 2005 were analyzed.

Results

• The 92 patients had a mean age of 60.2 years; 78 (85%) were males and 14 (15%) were females.
• Pre-operative chemoradiotherapy and chemotherapy were provided to 54 patients (59%) and 38 patients (41%), respectively.
• For pre-operative chemotherapy, regimens were cisplatin (CDDP)-based in 48 patients (52%) and carboplatin (CBDCA)-based in 43 (42%) patients.
• While stromal cells expressed PDGFR-β in 21 chemo-naïve patients (49%), stromal cells expressed PDGFR-β in 65 patients who underwent pre-operative therapy (p=0.02).
• The PDGFR-β-positive group showed a significantly worse 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate than the negative group (27 vs. 48%, p=0.04).
• In addition, a significantly worse 5-year disease-specific survival (DSS) rate in the stromal PDGFR-β-positive group than the negative group (43% vs. 70%, p=0.01).
• However, stromal PDGFR-β expression was not observed influencing survival in chemo-naïve patients.