Correlation of KLF4 and SPARC Expression with the Clinical Characteristics of Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

Background and objective It has been proven that the development and biological behavior of lung carcinoma is affected by a number of signaling pathway elements. The expression levels of Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4) and secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) were correlated with tumorigenesis and prognosis. This study aims to investigate KLF4 and SPARC expression and their correlation with the clinical characteristics of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods KLF4 and SPARC expression was examined immunohistochemically in NSCLC and normal lung tissues from 89 patients. Results SPARC expression was increased in the tumor specimens compared with the control tissue (70.8% vs 7.9%, P0.05). KLF4 expression was negatively correlated with SPARC expression in NSCLC (r=-0.245, P