The Cancer Genome Atlas and experimental validation-based analysis of the SPRR2A gene’s expression and clinical relevance in endometrial cancer

Objective This study aimed to identify SPRR2A as a hub gene in endometrial cancer (EC) and explore its potential as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker. Methods Bioinformatics analysis was performed on high-throughput sequencing datasets of EC cases from The Cancer Genome Atlas. Reverse-transcription-quantitative PCR validated the differential expression of SPRR2A in EC cell lines and tissues. Results Compared with normal cells and adjacent tissues, EC cells and tissues showed significantly upregulated SPRR2A expression (p<0.05). High SPRR2A expression was associated with poor prognosis in EC patients (HR=1.52, 95% CI 1.00 to 2.30, p=0.048). Furthermore, the expression levels of SPRR2A varied across histological grades, being significantly lower in G1 tumours than in G2 and G3 tumours. However, no significant differences in SPRR2A expression regarding age, clinical stage, tumour invasion or histological type were found. Conclusion SPRR2A is overexpressed in EC and serves as an independent predictor of poor prognosis. It may be a potential biomarker for EC diagnosis and prognosis. Further research is needed to explore its molecular mechanisms and clinical applications.