Correlation of survivin mRNA detection with histologic diagnosis in normal endometrium and endometrial carcinoma

Background. The objective of this study was to determine if survivin mRNA expression is a marker of endometrioid adenocarcinoma and if survivin mRNA levels correlate with tumor grade and stage. Methods. Twenty-six samples of endometrioid adenocarcinoma and 18 cases of benign endometrium were obtained at surgery. RNA was extracted from tissues and was used for quantitative real-time RT-PCR, targeting a 91-bp sequence of survivin mRNA and the levels were standardized to the levels of ribosomal RNA. Statistical analysis of the correlation between histologic diagnosis and the corrected survivin mRNA levels was performed by the Fisher Exact test and the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results. Survivin mRNA was detected in all specimens. Survivin mRNA levels were increased in proliferative endometrium (P = 0.0509) and was increased in correlation with ascending grade in endometrioid adenocarcinoma (P = 0.01). Conclusion. Survivin mRNA is not a specific marker of endometrial cancer, but may reflect an important mechanism in tumor progression of the endometrial mucosa.