Abstract
AIM: To investigate the correlation and significance between the urine soluble Fas (sFas) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in patients with urothelial bladder carcinoma (UC). METHODS: The level of sFas was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and the expression of VEGF protein in UC surgical specimens was screened by immunohistochemical method. These data were analyzed through SPSS 13.0 software. RESULTS: The urinary sFas levels were significantly higher in the patients with UC than in those without cancer (168.0 ng/mL ± 84.6 versus 56.2 ng/mL ± 37.0; P < 0.05) and in the cases with a higher stage or grade than in those with a lower stage or grade (each P < 0.05). They had a positive relationship between the expression of VEGF protein and the pathological stage or grade in UC tissues (each P < 0.05). Spearman rank correlation test showed a significant correlation between sFas levels and VEGF expressions (R = 0.882, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The effects of sFas and VEGF may play important roles together in the occurrence and progression of UC. Joint detection of urine sFas plus VEGF protein may provide valuable solutions to improve the diagnosis and treatment of UC.