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World J Gastroenterol. Jan 7, 2014; 20(1): 183-192
Published online Jan 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i1.183
Published online Jan 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i1.183
ALK gene copy number gain and its clinical significance in hepatocellular carcinoma
Shou-Wei Jia, Hong-Bing Huang, Department of Pharmacy, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center; State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China; Collaborative Innovation Center on Cancer Medicine; Guangzhou 510060, Guangdong Province, China
Sha Fu, Fang Wang, Qiong Shao, Jian-Yong Shao, Department of Molecular Diagnostics, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center; State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China; Collaborative Innovation Center on Cancer Medicine; Guangzhou 510060, Guangdong Province, China
Author contributions: Huang HB and Shao JY designed the research; Fu S and Shao Q collected data; Jia SW and Shao Q carried out the laboratory experiments; Jia SW, Fu S and Wang F analyzed the data and interpreted the results; all authors contributed to the preparation of the paper.
Correspondence to: Jian-Yong Shao, MD, PhD, Department of Molecular Diagnostics, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center, No.651 Dongfeng Road, Guangzhou 510060, Guangdong Province, China. shaojy@sysucc.org.cn
Telephone: +86-20-87345599 Fax: +86-20-87345599
Received: August 5, 2013
Revised: October 8, 2013
Accepted: October 17, 2013
Published online: January 7, 2014
Revised: October 8, 2013
Accepted: October 17, 2013
Published online: January 7, 2014
Core Tip
Core tip: This study retrospectively analyzed the status and clinical significance of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene alterations in a relatively large number of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. We used HCC tissue microarrays to detect ALK transcripts by fluorescent in situ hybridization. No positive cases of ALK gene rearrangements and ALK amplification were observed. However, we found that ALK gene copy number gain (ALK/CNG) was common in HCC (13.15%, 28/213). Our findings suggest that ALK/CNG may serve as a prognostic marker for HCC, especially in patients with advanced stage, grade III pathology.