Introduction: Plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI-1) may have an independent prognostic value in breast cancer (BC). PAI-1 4G/5G polymorphism may have significance for antigen expression. Thus, we analyzed the possible associations between PAI-1 4G/5G polymorphism, plasma PAI-1 levels, and clinicopathological features of breast cancer (BC) patients.
Patients and methods: PAI-1 4G/5G polymorphism (both on germinal and tumor DNA) and plasma PAI-1 levels were investigated in 99 BC patients and 50 unrelated healthy women similar for age and menopausal status.
Results: No association was found between allele frequencies and clinicopathological features of BC or plasma antigen levels. Plasma PAI-1 levels were higher in BC compared to controls (p=0.002), particularly in patients with large tumors (p<0.001). 5-year follow-up was achieved in 79 patients: 30% had relapsing disease, 63% with positive compared to 37% with negative PAI-1 levels (p<0.05). 5-year relapse-free survival rate of positive PAI-1 was 46% vs., 77% of negative patients (p=0.02).
Conclusions: We may conclude that plasma PAI-1 levels in BC patients could represent a useful prognostic variable for relapse, although PAI-1 polymorphism might not represent a genetic susceptibility factor.