Circulating levels of novel adipocytokines in patients with colorectal cancer

Abstract

Objective: Adipocytokines have been reported to contribute to the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer (CRC). The aim of this matched case-control study was to explore circulating novel adipocytokines, such as serum visfatin, omentin-1 and vaspin levels in patients with CRC.

Method: Serum visfatin, omentin-1, and vaspin levels were measured in 69 subjects (39 patients with colorectal cancer and 30 age- and sex-matched healthy controls) using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) methods.

Results: Compared with the controls, patients with CRC had significantly higher circulating omentin-1 (203.23 vs 9.12 ng/ml, p < 0.0001) visfatin (4.03 vs 2.01 ng/ml, p < 0.0001) and vaspin (0.54 vs 0.31 ng/ml, p = 0.015) levels. After adjustment for covariates (age and body mass index), patients with CRC had significantly higher serum omentin-1 (p < 0.0001), visfatin (p < 0.0001), and vaspin (p = 0.040) levels than the control group. Furthermore, the results did not change when age and waist-to-hip ratio were considered as covariates in the general linear models.

Conclusions: The observed higher levels of omentin-1, visfatin, and vaspin in patients with CRC, independent of measures of obesity, suggest that these adipocytokines may have a potential role in the development of CRC through mechanisms other than the indirect mechanisms that are active in the association between obesity and CRC.