Clinical significance of Girdin expression detected by immunohistochemistry in non-small cell lung cancer

Girdin protein has been implicated in cell migration and proliferation control. Previous evidence has confirmed that Girdin is a pivotal protein during cancer progression. To date, no evidence has been identified for the clinical significance of Girdin expression in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The current study aimed to investigate the expression and clinical significance of Girdin protein in NSCLC. In total, 36 tumor samples were obtained from patients undergoing surgery for NSCLC at The 309th Hospital of Chinese People's Liberation Army (Beijing, China). The protein expression of Girdin was determined by immunohistochemistry analysis and the levels of Girdin protein were significantly higher in tumor samples than in distal normal lung tissue. A significant correlation was identified between Girdin overexpression and blood vessel infiltration of the tumor (P=0.013). Furthermore, analysis found that the Girdin-high phenotype was not associated with higher Ki-67 score. Girdin protein was frequently overexpressed in NSCLC and expression of Girdin was associated with blood vessel infiltration. The results of the present study suggest that Girdin should be considered as a potential marker for the prognosis of NSCLC; however, future studies are required to confirm theses results.