Correlation between MMP2 expression in lung cancer tissues and clinical parameters: a retrospective clinical analysis

Background Matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) has been found to be related to malignant tumors; the aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between MMP2 expression in lung cancer tissues and clinical parameters of lung cancer. Methods The expression of MMP2 in lung cancer tissues and in adjacent non-malignant tissues was tested by immunohistochemistry. The correlation between the expression of MMP2 and clinical parameters of lung cancer was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier curve and multiple regression analysis. Results The expression of MMP2 was higher in lung cancer tissues than that in adjacent non-malignant tissues ( p = 0.002). Increased MMP2 was associated with low differentiation ( p = 0.022), tumor size ( p = 0.032), lymph node metastasis ( p < 0.001), advanced stage ( p = 0.002). The post-surgical survival time in patients with high MMP2 expression was shorter than that in patients with low MMP2 expression ( p = 0.001). High expression of MMP2 ( p = 0.006) and advanced stage ( p = 0.003) were independent prognostic indicators for survival of lung cancer patients. Conclusions Increased MMP2 correlates with malignant biological behavior of lung cancer and it could be a potential biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis of the disease.