Immunohistochemical study of c-erbB-2 oncoprotein overexpression in human major salivary gland carcinoma: an indicator of aggressiveness.
In order to analyze the correlation between immunohistochemical positivity for c-erbB-2 oncoprotein and prognosis in patients with malignant salivary gland tumors, 59 cases of malignant tumors of the major salivary glands, including 35 parotid gland, 20 submaxillary gland and 4 sublingual gland tumors, were studied immunohistochemically using a polyclonal antibody against c-erbB-2 oncoprotein. Positive staining was observed in 13 (22%) of the 59 cases. Interestingly, positive results were obtained only in adenocarcinoma (6/20) and carcinoma in pleomorphic adenoma (7/15), and not in any other histological types such as adenoid cystic carcinoma, mucoepidermoid tumor, and squamous cell carcinoma. There was no correlation between the degree of differentiation of adenocarcinoma and c-erbB-2 positivity. Since the carcinoma in pleomorphic adenoma positive for c-erbB-2 oncoprotein was adenocarcinoma, adenocarcinoma and adenocarcinoma in pleomorphic adenoma were placed together (n = 33), and the presence or absence of c-erbB-2 oncoprotein in this group was examined for correlation with patients' survival and other clinicopathological features, including clinical stage, tumor size, surgical margins, and lymph node status. The c-erbB-2-positive tumors tended to be more advanced and larger than negative tumors. Similarly, c-erbB-2-positive tumors were difficult to resect completely, were associated with lymph node metastasis more frequently, and showed lower disease-free survival than negative cases (P less than .05). We conclude that immunohistochemical positivity for c-erbB-2 is an indicator of aggressiveness in both adenocarcinoma and adenocarcinoma in pleomorphic adenoma of the major salivary glands.
Pathology Division, National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan.
S
S
Sugano
K
K
Mukai
H
H
Tsuda
S
S
Hirohashi
S
S
Furuya
Y
Y
Shimosato
S
S
Ebihara
I
I
Takeyama
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D008949:Adenoma, Pleomorphic / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D005784:Gene Amplification; D015870:Gene Expression; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009373:Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D009378:Neoplasms, Multiple Primary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D010307:Parotid Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D011519:Proto-Oncogenes / Q000235:genetics*; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D012468:Salivary Gland Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D013362:Sublingual Gland Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D013365:Submandibular Gland Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D015996:Survival Rate
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases