Clinical significance of serum laminin levels in patients with lung cancer.

Cellular adhesion molecules are considered useful markers in the diagnosis and prognosis of several types of malignant tumors. Laminin, a major structural component of the basement membrane, is a strong promoter of cell adhesion, migration, differentiation and proliferation via integrins and other cell surface receptors. The present study aimed to evaluate the clinical significance of the serum level of laminin in lung cancer patients. A total of 80 patients with lung cancer were enrolled in the study. The serum laminin level was measured by the solid-phase sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. The median age was 58.5 years (range, 36-80 years). The majority of the patients had non-small cell lung carcinoma (85%) and stage IV disease (56%). The baseline serum laminin levels of patients were significantly higher compared to the control group (median values 1.17 vs. 0.78 ng/ml, P=0.033). However, the clinical variables, such as age, gender, histology, stage of disease and response to chemotherapy, were not correlated with serum laminin level (P>0.05). Similarly, serum laminin level was not associated with survival (P=0.68). In conclusion, the serum level of laminin may have a diagnostic value in lung cancer patients. However, its predictive and prognostic roles were not observed.