Table 2.
Serum levels of biomarkers tested in colorectal cancer patients in relation to clinicopathological features of tumor
| Variable analyzed | No. | MMP-2 (ng/mL) | TIMP-2 (ng/mL) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median (range) | p | Median (range) | p | ||
| Tested group | |||||
| CRC | 72 | 180 (87–476) | <0.001* | 81 (35–132) | 0.003* |
| Control group | 68 | 235 (108–384) | 90 (54–141) | ||
| Tumor stage (Duke’s classification) | |||||
| A + B1 + B2 | 28 | 180 (87–308) | 0.548 | 82 (35–109) | 0.804 |
| C1 + C2 | 23 | 193 (110–361) | 81 (68–109) | ||
| D | 21 | 170 (121–476) | 79 (59–132) | ||
| Tumor size (T factor) | |||||
| T1 + T2 + T3 | 59 | 182 (87–479) | 0.067 | 82 (35–132) | 0.707 |
| T4 | 13 | 136 (110–361) | 79 (59–110) | ||
| Nodal involvement (N factor) | |||||
| N0 | 30 | 182 (87–308) | 0.851 | 82 (35–109) | 0.621 |
| N1 + N2 + N3 | 42 | 175 (110–476) | 80 (59–132) | ||
| Distant metastases (M factor) | |||||
| M0 | 51 | 182 (87–361) | 0.372 | 82 (35–109) | 0.733 |
| M1 | 21 | 170 (121–476) | 79 (59–132) | ||
*p < 0.05, statistically significant