At the 5-year selleck follow-up, approximately 79%

of the patients with low NNMT expression (< 4.40; copy number ratio) survived, whereas 60% of the patients with high NNMT Proteasome cleavage expression (≥ 4.40; copy number ratio) survived (Figure 2A). Similarly, at the 5-year follow-up, approximately 45% of the patients with low NNMT expression were disease-free, whereas 22% with high NNMT expression were disease-free (Figure 2B). The log-rank test showed that patients who expressed higher NNMT mRNA levels tended to have a shorter OS time (P = 0.053) and a significantly shorter DFS time (P = 0.016). A univariate Cox regression analysis was used to identify important prognostic factors of OS and DFS. High Edmondson grade (grade I vs II, P = 0.020; grade I vs III-IV, P = 0.019), high AFP level (P = 0.0070), large tumor size (P = 0.00012), and high tumor stage (stage I vs II, P = 0.0068; stage I vs III-IV, P = 2.2 × 10-5) were identified as important risk factors for OS (Table 2), whereas high NNMT mRNA level (P = 0.018) and high tumor stage (stage I vs III-IV, P = 0.0049) were identified JNK-IN-8 nmr as important risk factors for DFS (Table 3). In a multivariate Cox analysis, both NNMT expression (P = 0.0096) and tumor stage III & IV (P = 0.0017) were found to be significant prognostic factors for DFS

(Table 4). Table 2 Univariate Cox regression analysis for overall survival Variable Hazard Ratio 95% Confidence Demeclocycline Interval P value     Lower limit Upper limit   Age (< 55 years vs ≥ 55 years) 0.76 0.38 1.53 0.45 Gender (male vs female) 1.00 0.46 2.21 1.00 Edmondson grade (I vs II) 5.51 1.31 23.2 0.02 Edmondson grade (I vs III – IV) 6.53 1.36 31.4 0.019 HbsAg (absent vs present) 1.49 0.58 3.83 0.41 HCV (absent vs present) 2.06 0.73 5.87 0.17 AFP level (< 100 ng/ml vs ≥ 100 ng/ml) 2.67 1.31 5.46 0.0070 Liver cirrhosis (absent vs present) 1.50 0.77 2.93 0.23

Tumor size (< 5 cm vs ≥ 5 cm) 4.07 1.99 8.31 0.00012 Tumor stage (I vs II) 7.81 1.76 34.6 0.0068 Tumor stage (I vs III – IV) 23.5 5.48 100.9 2.2 × 10-5 NNMT (low vs high) 1.91 0.98 3.71 0.057 Table 3 Univariate Cox regression analysis for disease-free survival Variable Hazard Ratio 95% Confidence Interval P value     Lower limit Upper limit   Age (< 55 years vs ≥ 55 years) 0.80 0.50 1.27 0.34 Gender (male vs female) 1.02 0.60 1.73 0.95 Edmondson grade (I vs II) 1.25 0.72 2.17 0.43 Edmondson grade (I vs III – IV) 1.08 0.50 2.30 0.85 HbsAg (absent vs present) 1.02 0.58 1.80 0.94 HCV (absent vs present) 2.11 0.97 4.60 0.061 AFP level (< 100 ng/ml vs ≥ 100 ng/ml) 1.19 0.76 1.86 0.45 Liver cirrhosis (absent vs present) 1.14 0.73 1.78 0.57 Tumor size (< 5 cm vs ≥ 5 cm) 1.30 0.82 2.04 0.26 Tumor stage (I vs II) 1.10 0.64 1.89 0.72 Tumor stage (I vs III – IV) 2.22 1.27 3.87 0.0049 NNMT (low vs high) 1.72 1.10 2.70 0.