OP051

Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is an important regulator of protein translation, biosynthesis, cell growth and cell proliferation, is over-activated in various human malignancies, but very few studies have yet to explore the mTOR activity in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), which is the 7th leading death of malignancy in Taiwan. We collect tissue samples of 58 OSCC patients from Taipei veteran general hospital during along with their clinical parameters. Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining was performed on the tissues for investigating active mTOR (p-mTOR) expression level with the use of tissue microarray (TMA) technique. The results revealed p-mTOR expression level in OSCC tissues are significantly higher than in normal oral mucosal tissues ( p p = 0.0391) and higher tumor recurrence after adjuvant cisplantin treatment ( p = 0.0159). Although positive group shows a relatively rapid descent on survival curves, no significant difference between positive and negative group in over-all survival rate ( p = 0.1064), cancer specific survival rate ( p = 0.0914) and disease free survival rate ( p = 0.0509). p-mTOR expression level in OSCC correlates to tumor recurrence, possible poorer survival rate and may even associate with cisplantin resistance in our study. A scale-up study in the future may further elucidate the role of mTOR in OSCC.