Expression of Transcription Factor PU.1 in Stromal Cells as a Prognostic Marker in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Transcription factor PU.1 is involved in hematopoiesis and is expressed in various cells of the inflammatory infiltrate of the tumor stroma, mainly in macrophages. The expression of PU.1 in 100 samples of non-small cell lung cancer was analyzed by the immunohistochemical method. The number of PU.1+ cells did not correlate with clinical and morphological parameters of the tumors. However, increased number of PU.1+ cells significantly correlated with favorable prognosis in adenocarcinoma and poor prognosis in squamous cell carcinoma. Thus, transcription factor PU.1 can serve as a stromal prognostic marker of non-small cell lung cancer depending on the histological type of the tumor.