Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-3 (TIMP-3) can regulate tumor infiltration and metastasis through multiple channels and is likely associated with mutant-type p53 (mtp53). This study detected the expressions of TIMP-3 and mtp53 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and lymph node metastasis using tissue microarray and evaluated their significance. METHODS: TIMP-3 and mtp53 expressions were detected in 288 cases of NSCLC (NSCLC group), 106 cases of metastatic carcinoma in lymph nodes (metastasis group), and 24 cases of benign lesions in the bronchial mucosa epithelium (control group) by immunohistochemical staining (LSAB and Elivision). RESULTS: The expression of TIMP-3 in the NSCLC and metastasis groups was lower than that in the control group (P<0.001), but the reverse was true for the expression of mtp53 (P<0.001). TIMP-3 and mtp53 expressions differed between NSCLC with (P=0.015) and without (P=0.030) lymph node metastasis. TIMP-3 expression correlated with NSCLC grade (P=0.030), whereas mtp53 expression correlated with TNM stage (P=0.016) and NSCLC histological type (P=0.004). Moreover, the expressions of TIMP-3 and mtp53 were negative in NSCLC cases (P=0.008) and correlated with patient survival (P=0.011 and P=0.003, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Low expression of TIMP-3 and high expression of mtp53 in NSCLC can promote tumor metastasis and inhibit each other. TIMP-3 and mtp53 are promising targets for studying the metastatic mechanism of NSCLC.