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VEGF and Angiogenesis in Bladder Cancer

Serum levels of VEGF were significantly higher in patients with muscular invasive bladder cancer than in patients with superficial bladder cancer (p<0.005)

— Nakanishi et al. Urol Int. 20091

American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates 69,250 new cases of urinary bladder cancer in the United States in the year 2011, of which 52,020 would be males and 17,230 would be females. ACS also estimates 14,990 deaths to occur from bladder cancer in the year 2011, comprising 10,670 males and 4320 females.2 Approximately 70% to 80% of cases present with nonmuscle-invasive disease, and despite endoscopic and intravesical therapy, 50% to 70% will recur; 10% to 30% will progress to muscle-invasive disease. Most recurrences appear within 5 years, and the risk of tumor progression increases with higher-grade lesions.3 This underscores the importance of detection and treatment at early stages of disease.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a primary angiogenic factor.4 In the angiogenic pathway, hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) upregulates VEGF expression, which directly stimulates angiogenesis, while other proangiogenic determinants stimulate endothelial cell migration.5 VEGF is a major determinant of the biological behavior of early bladder cancer.4 Findings from studies have shown that:

  • High VEGF expression is associated with disease progression4
  • VEGF is associated with decreased relapse-free and disease-free survival4
  • VEGF expression can be used as a prognostic marker in bladder cancer6
  • Higher levels of VEGF expression are associated with poorer prognosis7
  • VEGF is associated with microvessel density (MVD)8

This section of ResearchVEGF.com will describe research on the role of VEGF and angiogenesis in bladder cancer, including evidence and prevalence of VEGF expression in the disease, the relationship between VEGF and prognosis, VEGF as a predictive factor, and the correlation between VEGF and MVD.

For more information on a specific topic regarding VEGF and angiogenesis in bladder cancer, click on the links below.

In This Section

References:
1.
Nakanishi R, Oka N, Nakatsuji H, et al. Urol Int. 2009;83:98-106. PMID: 19641368
2.
American Cancer Society. Cancer facts and figures 2011. http://www.cancer.org/Research/CancerFactsFigures/
CancerFactsFigures/cancer-facts-figures-2011. Accessed July 13, 2011.
3.
Jacobs BL, Lee CT, Montie JE. CA Cancer J Clin. 2010;60:244-272. PMID: 20566675
4.
Crew JP, O'Brien T, Bradburn M, et al. Cancer Res. 1997;57:5281-5285. PMID: 9393750
5.
Mitra AP, Datar RH, Cote RJ. J Clin Oncol. 2006;24:5552-5564. PMID: 17158541
6.
Yang S, Wu X, Luo C, et al. World J Urol. 2010;28:473-478. PMID: 20593288
7.
Bernardini S, Fauconnet S, Chabannes E, et al. J Urol. 2001;166:1275-1279. PMID: 11547057
8.
Wang S, Xia T, Zhang Z, et al. Zhonghua Wai Ke Za Zhi. 2000;38:34-36. PMID: 11831983