Aim: Determination of changes in serum levels of soluble (s) VEGFR-1 and Tie-2 receptors in colorectal cancer patients following resection in the search for novel tumour markers.
Patients and methods: Forty-five patients with primary colorectal cancer and 29 normal subjects were recruited. Serum sVEGFR-1 and sTie-2 receptors were assayed using ELISA.
Results: sVEGFR-1 was detectable in 27% (10/37) and 12.5% (1/8) of cancer patients prior to curative and palliative resections, respectively, whilst 65.5% (19/29) of normal controls had detectable sVEGFR-1 levels. sTie-2 receptor levels were significantly raised in patients when compared with normal controls (p=0.0018). Furthermore, sTie-2 receptor levels were significantly higher in patients with metastases than those without (p=0.02). sTie-2 receptors demonstrated a significant drop in patients undergoing both curative (p<0.0001) and palliative resections (p=0.012).
Conclusion: sVEGFR-1 levels were suppressed and sTie-2 receptor levels were raised in colorectal cancer patients. This data supports the potential use of sTie-2 receptor as a tumour marker.