Objective: To investigate the value of serum macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1(MIC-1) in preoperative evaluation of lymphatic metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC). Methods: A total of 60 NSCLC patients who underwent radical resection for lung cancer at Yixing People's Hospital between October 2019 and April 2023 were enrolled: 30 patients with lymphatic metastasis confirmed by postoperative pathology and 30 patients without lymphatic metastasis. On the morning of surgery, the levels of serum MIC-1 and matrix metallopeptidase 9(MMP-9) were detected by ELISA, and the level of intratumoral MMP-9 was determined by Western blotting. The levels of serum MIC-1, MMP-9 and intratumoral MMP-9 were compared between the two groups. The relationships of serum MIC-1 and MMP-9 levels and intratumoral MMP-9 level were analyzed using Pearson correlation analysis. Receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve was used to evaluate the diagnostic value of serum MIC-1, serum MMP-9, intratumoral MMP-9, and the MMP-9/ MIC-1 ratio in distinguishing NSCLC with or without lymphatic metastasis preoperatively. Results: The levels of serum MIC-1, serum MMP-9 and intratumoral MMP-9 in NSCLC patients with lymphatic metastasis were significantly higher than those without lymphatic metastasis(P<0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that in NSCLC patients with lymphatic metastasis, serum MIC-1 level was positively correlated with intratumoral MMP-9 level(r=0.657, P<0.05), but was not correlated with serum MMP-9 level(r=0.081, P>0.05). However, among NSCLC patients without lymphatic metastasis, serum MIC-1, serum MMP-9 and intratumoral MMP-9 levels were not significantly correlated with each other(P>0.05). Using the optimal cut-off point of serum MIC-1>1 271.60 pg·mL-1, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for predicting NSCLC with lymphatic metastasis were 66.7%, 86.7%, and 76.7%, respectively. For intratumoral MMP-9 and the MMP-9/serum MIC-1 ratio, the optimal cut-off points were 0.96 and 0.783, respectively, yielding sensitivities, specificities, and accuracies of 86.7%, 83.3%, 73.3% and 86.7%, 76.7%, 81.7%, respectively. Conclusion: Serum MIC-1 can be a promising auxiliary clinical index for preoperative evaluation of lymphatic metastasis in NSCLC, possibly through MMP-9-mediated extracellular matrix degradation. |