Determining the Vasohibin-1 Levels of the Serum and Broncoalveolar Lavage Fluid in the Patients with Lung Cancer

Objective: Lung cancer constitutes 17% of all cancer cases and accounts for 23% of the deaths caused by cancer all over the world. Vasohibin-1 (VASH-1) is an angiogenesis-inhibiting factor synthesized by endothelial cells (ECs). This study aimed to examine the VASH-1 levels of the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and serum in the patients with lung cancer. Methods: A total of 82 patients participated in this study. 39 and 43 of them had a benign lung disease and lung cancer, respectively. The VASH-1 levels of serum and BAL were measured using the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Results: The BAL VASH-1 levels of the patients in the lung cancer group were found to be statistically significantly lower than those of the patients in the benign lung disease group (p=0.032). No statistically significant difference was found between the individuals with lung cancer and benign lung disease in terms of the serum VASH-1 concentration (p=0.206). A statistically significantly moderate positive correlation was found between the serum and BAL VASH-1 levels in the benign and malignant cases (benign r=0.442, p=0.005; malignant r=0.364, p=0.016). When the lung cancer patients were categorized into pathological stages and histological types, no significant difference was found between the stages and histological types in terms of the serum and BAL fluid VASH-1 concentrations. Conclusions: BAL VASH-1 concentrations decreased in the lung cancer patients compared to the individuals having a benign lung disease. Considering the results reached in this study, it was thought that the BAL VASH-1 concentrations might be beneficial in distinguishing between the benign and malignant lung diseases.