High alpha B-crystallin and p53 coexpression is associated with poor prognosis in ovarian cancer

This study investigated the correlation between alpha B-crystallin (CRYAB, HSPB5) and p53 expression in ovarian cancer and further analyzed the relationship between their expression and clinicopathology and the prognostic value of their coexpression in ovarian cancer. CRYAB and p53 expression was assessed using immunohistochemistry on ovarian cancer tumor tissues from 103 cases and validated in an independent group of 103 ovarian cancer patients. High CRYAB and p53 expression rates in ovarian cancer tissues were 61.17% and 57.28%, respectively, and their expression was positively correlated. High CRYAB and p53 coexpression was significantly correlated with pathological grade, lymph node metastasis, Distant metastasis, tumor, node, metastasis (TNM) stage, and survival. High expression of either CRYAB or p53 and high coexpression of CRYAB and p53 were significantly correlated with poor disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS), respectively. Patients with high CRYAB and p53 coexpression had the worst prognoses among the groups. In addition, multivariate Cox regression models showed that high expression of either CRYAB or p53 and high coexpression of CRYAB and p53 were independent prognostic factors for DFS and OS. Moreover, the positive correlation and prognostic value of CRYAB and p53 expression were verified in another independent dataset. We demonstrated that patients with high CRYAB and p53 coexpression in ovarian cancer tumors have significantly increased risks of recurrence, metastasis, and death compared with other patients. Therefore, more frequent follow-up of patients with high CRYAB and p53 coexpression is required.