Increased expression of MUC1 predicts poor survival in salivary gland mucoepidermoid carcinoma

BackgroundMucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC) is a malignant neoplasm that originates most commonly in the major and minor salivary glands. The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between mucin-1 (MUC1) expression and patient outcome based on a large number of cases.Patients and methodsSurgical specimens from 357 patients with primary salivary gland MEC and 10 patients with normal salivary gland tissue were examined by immunohistochemistry. The relationship between MUC1 expression and the clinicopathological data and patient survival was analyzed.ResultsResults showed that MUC1 expression level was higher in MEC tissues than in paired normal tissues (P = 0.001), and the expression level of MUC1 was significantly associated with gender (P = 0.02), location (P = 0.001), grade (P = 0.001), stage (P = 0.0018) and lymph node metastasis (P = 0.001). In addition, increased expression of MUC1 was confirmed as a strong predictor of poor survival in salivary gland MEC (HR 2.175 [95% CI 1.263, 3.745]; P = 0.0051).ConclusionThe findings indicate that an increased expression of MUC1 may be of great value in assessing the development and prognosis of salivary gland MEC, and could be used as a new molecule target to improve outcomes for these patients in the future.