Prognostic significance of plasma placental growth factor levels in renal cell cancer: An association with clinical characteristics and vascular endothelial growth factor levels

Background: Angiogenesis plays important roles in pathogenesis in human cancer. We assessed the relationship between clinical features of renal cell cancer (RCC) and PIGF levels in relation to VEGF. Materials and Methods: Plasma PIGF and VEGF levels were measured in patients with renal cell cancer. The levels of these angiogentic factors were analyzed in relation to clinical parameters. Results: PlGF and VEGF levels in patients with RCC were significantly higher than those in non-cancer controls. PIGF levels were significantly associated with histological grade and total tumor vascularity (TTV), and VEGF levels were significantly associated with T, M stage, histological grade, venous invasion and TTV. Multivariate analysis showed plasma PIGF was an independent prognostic factor. Conclusion: These findings suggested that plasma PlGF levels were significantly associated with the clinical features of RCC, especially prognostic significance.