The content of vascular endothelial growth factor system components in the blood and tumor tissue of patients with bladder cancer and type 2 diabetes mellitus

   The components of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) system are involved in the pathogenesis of bladder cancer (BC) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, data regarding the state of the VEGF system in patients with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) and concurrent T2DM are lacking.

   The aim of the study was to investigate the characteristics of the content of VEGF system components in the blood and tumor tissue in NMIBC in patients with T2DM.

   Material and methods. VEGF component level was measured using ELISA in the blood of patients with both BC and type T2DM (main group, 8 men, 3 women), patients with BC without T2DM (control group, 6 men, 5 women), patients with T2DM without BC (comparison group, 4 men, 4 women), and age-matched healthy donors (norm, 5 men, 6 women), and in homogenates of tumor tissue.

   Results. In BC, VEGF-A and VEGF-C concentrations were similar to those in the donor group. In T2DM, only VEGF-C content was elevated. VEGF-C concentration in men of the main group was lower than in the comparison group, whereas in women – was higher. Circulating sVEGF-R3 content exceeded the norm only in the main group. In tumor tissue, there were no significant differences in VEGF-A, VEGF-C, sVEGF-R1, or sVEGF-R3 level between BC patients with or without T2DM. However, patients with concurrent conditions exhibited lower sVEGF-R2 levels in tumor tissue.

   Conclusions. In the case of a combination of BC and T2DM, there is an increase in the involvement of the VEGF system during the course of the oncological disease, while in all patients, changes associated with the components responsible for lymphangiogenesis prevail.

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