The clinical significance of FSCN1 in non-small cell lung cancer.

Fascin actin-bundling protein 1 (FSCN1) plays significant roles in biological processes such as tumor cell invasion and metastasis. However, little is known about prognostic value of FSCN1 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). FSCN1 mRNA and protein expression were detected by real-time PCR and Western blot in NSCLC tissues and paired adjacent normal lung tissues. Furthermore, the association of FSCN1 protein expression with clinicopathological characteristics including the survival was explored in 156 NSCLC patients. In our results, FSCN1 mRNA and protein expression were obviously higher in NSCLC tissues than in normal lung tissues. High levels of FSCN1 protein were positively correlated with status of differentiated degree, clinical stage, N classification, and M classification in NSCLC. Meanwhile, higher FSCN1 protein expression was significantly associated with poor overall survival in patients with NSCLC. Multivariate analyses showed that increased FSCN1 protein expression was a poor independent prognostic biomarker for NSCLC patients. In conclusions, FSCN1 plays an important role on NSCLC progression and prognosis and may serve as a convictive prognostic biomarker for NSCLC patients.