Identification of a sixteen-microRNA signature as prognostic biomarker for stage II and III colon cancer

Despite advances in colon cancer research and novel therapies, high risk of recurrence remains a major challenge. This study reports miRNA expression profiling as a biomarker for the prognosis of TNM stage II and III colon cancer. Fresh frozen biopsies from the study cohort (N=111) were analyzed for miRNA by RT-qPCR and LASSO regression analysis was used to build a classifier of miRNAs. The prognostic accuracy was tested and the classifier was validated in an independent colon cohort (TCGA-COAD, N=209). The LASSO regression analysis identified a 16-miRNA signature including miR-143-5p, miR-27a-3p, miR-31-5p, miR-181a-5p, miR-30b-5p, miR-30d-5p, miR-146a-5p, miR-23a-3p, miR-150-5p, miR-210-3p, miR-25-3p, miR-196a-5p, miR-148a-3p, miR-222-3p, miR-30c-5p and miR-223-3p. A low 16-miRNA signature was associated with better 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) in the study cohort than a high signature (93 % versus 58 %; p<0.001). The signature was an independent prognostic factor for better 5-year DFS in multivariate analyses (HR 21.4; 95% CI: 4.21-108.7; p<0.001). The results in the validation cohort were consistent with the study cohort in univariate (77 % versus 65 %; p=0.045) and multivariate analyses (HR 2.0; 95% CI: 1.04-3.89; p=0.039). We identified a 16-miRNA signature as a reliable prognostic biomarker for classification of colon cancer stage II and III patients into groups with low and high risk for recurrence.