Positive immunohistochemical staining of gammaH2AX is associated with tumor progression in gastric cancers from radiation-exposed patients.

To elucidate the mechanism of radiation-induced cancers, molecular analysis of cancers in atomic bomb (A-bomb) exposure is important. DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) are thought to be caused by the deleterious effects of ionizing radiation, and gammaH2AX (serine 139 phosphorylated form of histone H2AX) is reported to be a significant marker for DSBs. In the present study, we performed immunohistochemical analysis of gammaH2AX in gastric cancers (GCs) from 66 exposed and 47 non-exposed patients who developed GC after the bombing. Of the 47 GCs from non-exposed patients, 6 (13%) cases showed nuclear positive staining for gammaH2AX, whereas of the 66 GCs from exposed patients, 20 (30%) cases were positive (P=0.0405). However, among stage I GC, there was no significant difference in gammaH2AX expression frequency between exposed patients and non-exposed patients. Among exposed patients, stage II-IV cases were more frequently positive for gammaH2AX than stage I cases (P=0.0197). Among GCs from non-exposed patients, gammaH2AX staining showed no significant association with Lauren's classification, depth of invasion, lymph node metastasis or TNM stage. These results suggest that the characteristics of tumor cells differ between GCs from exposed and non-exposed patients. DSBs may be involved in progression of GC in exposed patients.