Performance of Plasma HSP90α, Serum EBV VCA IgA Antibody and Plasma EBV DNA for the Diagnosis and Prognosis Prediction of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) VCA-IgA antibody, EBV DNA and HSP90α alone or in combinations for the diagnosis and prognostic prediction of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods

A total of 113 treatment-naïve patients with NPC and 40 healthy controls were enrolled. Plasma HSP90α and serum EBV VCA IgA antibody were detected using ELISA, and plasma EBV DNA was quantified using qPCR assay. The effectiveness of plasma HSP90α level, serum EBV VCA IgA antibody and plasma EBV DNA was examined in the diagnosis and prognosis prediction of NPC.

Results

Higher plasma HSP90α, serum EBV VCA IgA antibody and plasma viral load of EBV DNA were detected in NPC patients than in healthy controls (P < 0.001). The plasma HSP90α levels, serum EBV VCA IgA antibody titers and plasma viral load of EBV DNA were significantly greater in NPC patients with stages III and IV than in those with stages I and II (P < 0.001), and significantly lower plasma HSP90α levels, serum EBV VCA IgA antibody titers and plasma viral load of EBV DNA were found in the good prognosis group than in the poor prognosis group post-treatment (P < 0.05). The area under representative operating curves (AUCs) of plasma HSP90α, serum EBV VCA IgA antibody and plasma EBV DNA alone and in combination were 0.884, 0.841, 0.934 and 0.954 for the diagnosis of NPC, respectively. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analyses identified HSP90α as an independent prognostic factor for NPC.

Conclusion

The combination of plasma HSP90α, serum EBV VCA IgA antibody and plasma EBV DNA shows high diagnostic performance for NPC, and plasma HSP90α may be a potential marker for diagnosis and prognosis prediction of NPC.

Keywords:

• nasopharyngeal carcinoma
• EBV VCA-IgA antibody
• EBV DNA
• HSP90α
• diagnostic performance
• prognosis prediction

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all participants and the reviewers. This study was supported by the Joint Funds for the Innovation of Science and Technology, Fujian province (Grant number: 2017Y9072), and Science and Technology Program of Fujian Province, China (Grant number: 2018Y2003).

Disclosure

The authors declare no conflicts of interest in this work.