Background/aim: The role of microRNAs (miRNA) in carcinogenesis is related to their genome-regulatory function. The aim of the present study was to identify and compare miRNA expression signatures of meso- and hypopharynx squamous cell cancers in consideration of the cancer field hypothesis.
Patients and methods: Thirteen snap-frozen biopsy series of tumors and peritumoral tissues from the meso- and hypopharynx were analyzed regarding their miRNA expression with quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR).
Results: Significant miRNA expression changes of miR-21, -27a, -34a, -143 and -146a were found in peritumoral tissues that were dependent from the tumor location and the distance from the primary tumor site.
Conclusion: miRNA expression analysis was found to be appropriate for molecular segregation of tumor location and peritumoral tissue segments, and appears to be a promising marker for cancer field characterization.
Keywords: Head and neck cancer; epigenetics; micro-RNA; squamous cell carcinoma; tissue organization field theory.
Copyright© 2017, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.