Abstract
BACKGROUND: MicroRNA-451a (miR-451a) is associated with the treatment response and outcomes in patients with Hodgkin lymphoma. The present study aimed to investigate the expression of miR-451a in patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma, and to analyze its association with survival and prognosis in clinical patients. METHODS: A total of 164 patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma and 164 healthy controls (control group) were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were collected from participants and expression levels of miR-451a were detected using reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Multivariate Cox-regression analysis was used to analyze the association between serum level of miR-451a and overall survival, as well as prognosis of Hodgkin's lymphoma patients. Kaplan-Meier curve was used to analyze the five-year recurrence. RESULTS: Outcomes demonstrated that Hodgkin's lymphoma patients had lower miR-451a serum level than healthy controls. The present results showed that expression of miR-451a was higher in the group where chemotherapy was effective than that patient where chemotherapy was ineffective. High serum levels of miR-451a were associated with longer overall survival and better prognosis of Hodgkin's lymphoma patients than patients who had lower serum miR-451a levels. Multivariate Cox-regression analysis identified miR-451a serum level was positively correlated with overall survival and prognosis in patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma. CONCLUSION: The results of the present study demonstrate that serum levels of miR-451a is decreased in patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma. Data indicate that serum levels of miR-451a can be used as one of the potential biomarkers and prognosis for patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma.