SP3-50 Serum hepatocyte growth factor levels and mortalities from cancer in apparently healthy general population

IntroductionHepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is elevated in patients with cancer and is a predictor for prognosis. We investigated whether slight elevation of serum HGF level was a marker for subclinical cancer and death in a general population.MethodsApparently healthy 1492 subjects had a health examination in 1999. Subjects with a history of liver disease or malignancies were excluded by a questionnaire. Finally, we measured plasma HGF levels in 1470 subjects. They were followed-up periodically for 10 years. The follow-up rate was 99.3%. We calculated mortalities from cancer by multivariate proportional hazards model.ResultsAt follow-up, 169 subjects had died (61 from cancer, 32 from cerebro-cardiovascular disease and 76 from others). The mean HGF level at baseline was significantly (p