Expression of excision repair cross-complementation group 1 and class III β-tubulin predict survival after chemotherapy for completely resected non-small cell lung cancer

In this study, we examined the expression of excision repair cross-complementation group 1 (ERCC1) protein in 90 completely resected lung cancer samples from patients who received adjuvant or neo-adjuvant platinum-based chemotherapy. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) was also studied in these samples. We also examined class III β-tubulin protein expression in 50 patients treated with a platinum-based drug plus paclitaxel. Among 90 patients treated with platinum-based chemotherapy, the loss of ERCC1 protein expression was associated with a better prognosis (p=0.0068). The effect of ERCC1 expression on survival was not seen in a separate set of 59 patients who underwent curative resection but did not receive adjuvant chemotherapy. Among 50 patients treated with a platinum-based drug plus paclitaxel, loss of class III β-tubulin protein expression was also associated with a better prognosis (p=0.0303). When combined, patients with a tumor that was negative for both ERCC1 and class III β-tubulin had a significantly longer overall survival than those with a tumor that expressed either ERCC1 or class III β-tubulin (p=0.0230). There was no relationship between the presence of an EGFR mutation and the patients’ survival after the platinum-based chemotherapy. In conclusion, we found that the loss of ERCC1 and class III β-tubulin protein expression were predictors of better survival in patients who received a platinum-based plus taxane chemotherapy.