Identification of Prognostic Biomarkers and Tumor Immune Microenvironment about Uveal Melanoma

Uveal melanoma (UM) is a malignant eye cancer that has a high mortality rate and is notoriously difficult to diagnose clinically. Identifying prognostic biomarkers and evaluating the tumor immune microenvironment for UM in order to improve diagnosis, treatment decisions and even overall survival for patients. The study involved a comprehensive analysis of transcriptome profiling from the TCGA-UVM project, with the aim of identifying biomarkers and exploring the relationship between the tumor immune microenvironment and UM. A total of 32 differentially expressed genes and 25 RNAs associated with the overall survival (OS) of UM patients were identified. The fusion gene HSPE1-MOB4 was found to have the highest risk ratio, indicating it plays a key role in the survival rate of these individuals. Through similarity analysis of RNAs expression levels in UM, two subtypes were identified, and the survival rate for Type 1 was notably greater compared to Type 2. Using LASSO regression, a risk model was developed to identify five genes as potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and prediction of overall survival (OS) in patients with UM. Additionally, an association between the risk score and the fraction of immune cells in the Tumor Immune Microenvironment (TIME) was proposed. The observations revealed a significant contrast in both immune score and clustering between high-risk and low-risk groups. These findings offer new insights into approaches for immunotherapy and suggest potential therapeutic targets for individual UM patients.