title: Immunohistochemical characterization of feline oral squamous cell carcinoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the expression of Ki67 and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), mitotic index (MI), and microvascular density (MVD) in feline oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) via immunohistochemical staining on archival tumor tissues and to seek a correlation between these markers and clinical variables.
  
  
  METHODS
  22 archived tumor samples of feline oral SCC.
  
  
  METHODS
  Immunohistochemical staining for Ki67, MVD, and EGFR was performed and scored. Patient survival information was obtained from the medical records. These molecular markers as well as MI were correlated with tumor locations and patient survival time.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 22 tumors had wide variation in Ki67 expression, MI, MVD, and EGFR expression. Tongue SCC had higher MVD than did mandibular and maxillary SCC. Tumor expression of EGFR was inversely proportional to survival time.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results suggested that EGFR expression might be a valuable prognostic factor for treatment outcome in feline oral SCC. It also identified higher angiogenesis in tongue SCC, compared with mandibular and maxillary SCC, which may account for a different clinical outcome. Further prospective characterization of feline oral SCC may provide a better understanding of the underlying molecular factors that drive its behavior and offer the possibility for future patient-specific treatment plans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA. Hiroto.Yoshikawa@colostate.edu
authors.forename: Hiroto
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yoshikawa
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Ehrhart
authors.forename: Joseph B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Charles
authors.forename: Douglas H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Thamm
authors.forename: Susan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Larue
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000098:blood supply / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D002415:Cats; D066246:ErbB Receptors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / Q000502:physiology; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000662:veterinary*; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000662:veterinary; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D019394:Ki-67 Antigen; D066246:ErbB Receptors