High Tumor Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Expression Is Associated With Poorer Clinical Outcomes in Resected T3 Gastric Adenocarcinoma

Objectives: To investigate the clinical and prognostic significance of high vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in resected T3 gastric adenocarcinoma (GA). Methods: Data of VEGF expression on 453 patients with resected T3 GA were collected from a single institute in Fuzhou, China. VEGF expression in the resected tumor tissues was evaluated by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Associations between VEGF expression outcomes and prognosis were investigated using by the χ2 test, Kaplan-Meier plus log-rank test, and univariate and multivariate Cox models. Results: In total, 48.6% (220/453) patients had low VEGF expression (IHC score ≤2+). Patients with high VEGF expression (IHC>2+; 233/453, 51.4%) had significantly poorer median recurrence-free survival time (20 vs 55 months, P  < .001) and median overall survival time (28 vs 58 months; P  < .001) than patients with low VEGF. High VEGF was associated with higher overall recurrence (68.2% vs 51.4%, P  = 2.675 × 10−4), poorer overall survival (27.5% vs 47.3%, P  = 1.719 × 10−5), and increased risk of recurrence (hazard ratio [HR], 1.71; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.33-2.19; P  = 2.43 × 10−5) and death (HR, 1.80; 95% CI, 1.41-2.3; P  = 2.19 × 10−6). Conclusions: High VEGF expression is associated with a higher risk of recurrence and shorter survival in resected T3 GA. These findings may provide a foundation for evaluating VEGF-targeted molecular therapies in T3 GA.