Abstract

Background: HCC is one of the most common and invasive malignant tumors in the world. The objective of this research was to explore the methylation of TBX15 and determine the clinical value of TBX15 Hypermethylation in Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: The methylation status of the TBX15 gene in 61 pairs of HCC patient tumor and paracancerous tissues was analyzed with bisulfite and methylation-specific PCR, and the association between TBX15 Hypermethylation and specific clinical features was determined.

Results: TBX15 Hypermethylation was associated with patient prognosis. Eighty percent of the tumor and associated paracancerous tissues were hypermethylated. The methylation levels of TBX15 in all 61 tumors were higher than those in the paired paracancerous tissues. The difference between the two tissue types was statistically significant (P<0.001). The methylation level of TBX15 was increased in tumor tissues with vascular invasion (P>0.05) and poor envelope integrity (P<0.05). Additionally, Hypermethylation of TBX15 was statistically associated with advanced cancer stage (P<0.05). The Area Under the Curve (AUC) value (0.98) indicated that TBX15 Hypermethylation had a high confidence value for diagnosing HCC. The Kaplan-Meier analysis suggested that TBX15 Hypermethylation was associated with low relapse-free survival rates. The Cox proportional hazards regression analysis indicated that TBX15 Hypermethylation was an independent factor affecting prognosis.

Conclusion: TBX15 Hypermethylation was related to malignant behavior and was identified as a potential indicator for poor prognosis. Therefore, TBX15 Hypermethylation can be used as a biomarker for the diagnosis and prognostication of HCCs.

Keywords: TBX15; DNA hypermethylation; Hepatocellular carcinoma; Biomarker; Hepatology