title: Significance and relationship between infiltrating inflammatory cell and tumor angiogenesis in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the relationship between infiltrating inflammatory cell and tumor angiogenesis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues and their clinicopathological features.
  
  
  METHODS
  The paraffin-embedded specimens from 70 cases with HCC were stained using EliVision immunohistochemistry with mAbs against CD68, tryptase, and CD34. The counts of tumor-associated macrophage (TAM), mast cell (MC) and tumor microvessel (MV) were performed in the tissue sections.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean counts of TAM, MC, and MV in HCC tissues were significantly higher than those in pericarcinomatous liver tissues (TAM: 69.31+/-11.58 vs 40.23+/-10.36; MC:16.74+/-5.67 vs 7.59+/-4.18; MV: 70.11+/-12.45 vs 38.52+/-11.16, P<0.01). The MV count in the patients with metastasis was markedly higher than that with non-metastasis (P<0.01). In addition, the MC count in the patients with poorly differentiated HCC was obviously higher than that with well differentiated HCC (P<0.01). The correlation analysis showed that the TAM count was significantly correlated with the count of MV (r=0.712, P<0.01), and the MC count was obviously correlated with the MV count (r=0.336, P<0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  TAM and MC might be closely related to the enhancement of tumor angiogenesis. The MV count might be associated with tumor invasion and metastasis. Moreover, the MC count might be associated with tumor differentiation and prognosis of HCC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Medical College, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410006, Hunan Province, China. pengshaohua2004@sina.com
authors.forename: Shao-Hua
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.forename: Jian-Feng
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Ping-Ping
authors.initials: PP
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Cheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: De-Yun
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Feng
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D008264:Macrophages / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008407:Mast Cells / Q000473:pathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology