Prognostic Value of P-glycoprotein and Proliferative Index in Advanced Low Grade Serous Ovarian Carcinomas

Abstract

The aim of this study was to test the prognostic value of p-glycoprotein expression and the proliferative index of tumor cells on the clinical response to chemotherapy, on the brief disease-free interval (<12 months) and on cause-specific survival in advanced ovarian carcinoma. We evaluated 83 ovarian carcinoma patients homogeneous for stage, type and grade histological. Brief disease-free interval and cause-specific survival rates (Kaplan-Meier method) were compared using the log rank test. Multivariate analysis (Cox proportional hazards models) was used to determine the independent effect of each variable on prognosis. In the uni-variate analysis, P-glycoprotein expression (P<0.0005) and proliferative index (P=0.0003 and P=0.0006) were independent predictors of survival and brief disease-free interval; residual disease was associated with survival (P=0.021). In multivariate analysis (Cox proportional hazards models), P-glycoprotein expression (P=0.001 and P=<0.0005) and proliferative index (P=0.081 and P=0.041) were independent predictors of brief disease-free interval and survival. P-glycoprotein expression (P<0.0005) and proliferative index (P=0.008) were associated with clinical response to chemotherapy.