title: nm23 protein expression in metastatic and non-metastatic tongue squamous cell carcinoma.
abstract: Oral squamous cells carcinoma (OSCC) shows unfavorable prognosis due to its invasion potential around the neighboring tissues and the elevated incidence of metastasis.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  the present paper aims at analyzing the immunohistochemical expression of the nm23 protein in metastatic and non-metastatic SCCs of tongue.
  
  
  METHODS
  the immuno-expression to the nm23-hl protein was diagnosed in 35 tongue SCC (15 of which exhibiting metastasis). Nm23-hl immuno-scores were assigned as follow: score 0 = absent, 1 = focal and 2 = diffuse expression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Fisher's exact test was performed and there was no statistical difference between the nm23-hl immuno-scores and the tongue SCCs studied cases (p=0.365), although 66.7% of metastatic cases presented negative nm23-hl expression.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Protein nm23 was not associated with a positiveness for tongue SCC without metastasis. Thus, several others factors inherent to host and malignancy can be associated with the mechanisms that suppress the metastatic process in this disease.
authors.affiliation: Universidade do Estado Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ericka Janine
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Dantas da Silveira
authors.forename: Márcio Campos
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.forename: Maria de Lourdes
authors.initials: Mde L
authors.lastname: Silva Arruda de Morais
authors.forename: Lélia Maria Guedes
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Queiroz
authors.forename: Antonio de Lisboa Lopes
authors.initials: Ade L
authors.lastname: Lopes Costa
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism*; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000556:secondary; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D054778:NM23 Nucleoside Diphosphate Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014062:Tongue Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D054778:NM23 Nucleoside Diphosphate Kinases; C517938:NME1 protein, human