CD44 and CD133 Expressions in Primary Tumor Cells Correlate to Sur- vival of Pancreatic Cancer Patients

Background: Recent studies have suggested that CD44 and/or CD133 expressing pancreatic cancer cells have potential abilities of self-renewal, tumorigenesis and tumor metastasis. The aim of this study was to investigate whether CD44 and CD133 expressions in primary tumor cells correlate to the survival and clinicopathological findings of pancreatic cancer patients. Methods: Pancreatic head carcinoma specimens from 80 patients who underwent surgical resection were immunohistochemically assessed for CD44 and CD133 expressions. Results: Of the 80 specimens, 34 (42.5 %) and 48 (60%) specimens were immunohistochemically positive for CD44 and CD133 expression, respectively. CD44 was expressed on the cell surface and CD133 expression was observed in the cytoplasm of the positive cells, which were located at the peripheral adenocarcinoma glandular structures. There was no significant difference in the 5-year survival rate of patients based on CD44 expression, but the 5-year survival rate of CD133-positive patients was significantly lower than that of CD133-negative patients (P = 0.0002). Multivariate analysis revealed that CD44-positive and CD133-negative expression was a favorable prognostic indicator (P = 0.0424). Conclusions: CD44 and CD133 expressions are association with survival and malignant behavior in pancreatic cancer patients.