Correlation of aberrant expression of CD133 with FHIT and malignant phenotype of colorectal adenocarcinoma

Background The relationship between the expression of CD133 and fragile histidine triad (FHIT) or prognosis in Chinese colorectal adenocarcinoma is unknown and needs to be explored. Material and methods The samples of colorectal adenocarcinoma from 200 Chinese patients with follow-up were analyzed for the expression of CD133 and FHIT proteins by immunohistochemical method. Results CD133 was highly expressed in up to 42.0% (84/200) of this group of colorectal adenocarcinomas. The expression of CD133 was significantly higher in carcinoma than in normal ( P = 0.0001) and in adenomatous mucosas ( P = 0.004). CD133 positively corresponds to histological grade, clinical stage, regional lymphatic metastasis, and distant metastasis (all P < 0.05). The mean overall survival time was shorter in patients with CD133 high expression than in those with CD133 low expression ( P = 0.0001). The expression of CD133 was inversely correlative with that of FHIT ( r = −0.464, P = 0.0001) in colorectal adenocarcinoma. CD133 was an independent prognostic factor ( P = 0.0001). Conclusions The expression of CD133 may be inversely correlated with the expression of FHIT. It is suggested that CD133 may play an important role in the evolution of colorectal adenocarcinoma and be considered as a potential marker for the prognosis.