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Background/Aims: Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a developmental process, wherein the epithelial cells show reducedintercellular adhesions and acquire migratory fibroblastic properties. EMT is associated with downregulation in epithelial markerexpression, abnormal translocation of E-cadherin, and upregulation in mesenchymal marker expression. Here, we investigated theimmunohistochemical (IHC) expression of EMT markers in early gastric cancer (EGC) between cancer and noncancer tissues. Methods: Tissue samples were prospectively obtained from 19 patients with EGC that underwent endoscopic submucosal dissection(ESD). We compared the expression level of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF),E-cadherin, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and vimentin between cancer and noncancer tissues using IHC. Among the 19 patients,15 patients had follow-up biopsy at 3 months after ESD for EGC. Results: Cancer tissues presented higher values of EMT mesenchymal markers (α-SMA/vimentin/TGF-β/VEGF) than thenoncancerous tissues (p<0.05) that were significantly low after ESD (p<0.05). No significant correlation was reported for tumor locationand initial Helicobacter pylori infection. Conclusions: The mesenchymal expression of EMT markers was higher in the cancerous tissues than in the noncancer tissues.
