Angiogenic growth factors and endostatin in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

A number of clinical studies have demonstrated the prognostic significance of angiogenesis and angiogenic growth factors in solid tumours; however, very little is known about the relevance of these parameters in haematological malignancies. We evaluated circulating levels of angiogenic growth factors and endostatin in 36 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) patients. Baseline vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels of patients in complete remission (CR) after a median follow-up of 21 months were significantly lower than those of patients with progressive disease (P = 0.016). Event-free survival (EFS) rate was significantly higher in patients who had baseline VEGF and basic-fibroblast growth factor (b.FGF) levels below the median values of 147 and 19.5 pg/ml (P = 0.018 and 0.039 by log-rank test, respectively). Conversely, the levels of endostatin, angiogenin and leptin were not different in CR patients compared to relapsed patients and did not correlate with EFS. Our data suggest that b-FGF and, particularly, VEGF might be considered prognostic factors in NHL staging and management.