Primary tumor FMRP expression correlated with metastatic sites.

Nuclear and cytoplasmic staining of FMRP of the primary tumor in relation to the development of metastases at different sites. "Yes" and "no" mean that the metastasis is or is not present in that organ. We used conservative, non-parametric tests (e.g., Mann-Whitney U test) for the results of both cytoplasmic and nuclear FMRP expression in cases (n = 40). Nuclear FMRP staining was significantly higher in liver (p = 0.005; Mann-Whitney U test) and lung (p = 0.011; Mann-Whitney U test) and lower in brain (p = 0.033; Student’s t-test) and bone (p = 0.038; Student’s t-test) metastasis. No significant differences (NS) were observed for distant lymph node metastases. Cytoplasmic FMRP staining was significantly higher in the liver (p = 0.018; Mann-Whitney U test) and lung (p = 0.015; Mann-Whitney U test), and not significantly different for brain, bone, and distal lymph nodes. Data not available for all cases (patients with metastases).