Preoperative serum VEGF-C but not VEGF-A level is correlated with lateral neck metastasis in papillary thyroid carcinoma.

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the relationships between serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A or VEGF-C levels and lymph node metastasis (LNM) status in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). The study enrolled 150 patients with pathologically proven PTC who underwent surgery: PTC without LNM, PTC with central neck metastasis, and PTC with lateral neck metastasis. Preoperative serum VEGF-A levels were 300.12 ± 80.80 pg/mL overall and were not correlated with the presence of LNM. Preoperative serum VEGF-C levels were 132.41 ± 48.48 pg/mL overall and were significantly correlated with the presence of LNM. Serum VEGF-C levels were further increased in patients with lateral neck metastasis and positively correlated with the number of metastatic LNs (rho = 0.252, P = 0.002). Serum VEGF-C, but not VEGF-A, was identified as a significant predictor of lateral neck metastasis. Serum VEGF-C might be a clinically relevant biomarker of lateral neck metastasis in patients with PTC.