title: Thyroid transcription factor-1 (TTF-1) immunoreactivity is an adverse prognostic factor in endometrioid adenocarcinoma of the uterine corpus.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  It is known that thyroid transcription factor-1 (TTF-1) is expressed in a small percentage of primary gynaecological adenocarcinomas. Following the observation of TTF-1 positivity in a number of endometrioid adenocarcinomas of the uterine corpus which behaved aggressively, we undertook immunohistochemical staining of a large series of endometrial adenocarcinomas of various types to investigate whether its expression is of prognostic significance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  TTF-1 was performed on tissue microarrays containing 102 low-grade (grades 1 or 2) endometrioid adenocarcinomas, 101 grade 3 endometrioid adenocarcinomas, 89 serous adenocarcinomas and 29 clear cell carcinomas. All categories of endometrial adenocarcinoma exhibited TTF-1 staining in a small subset of cases (2% low-grade endometrioid, 11% grade 3 endometrioid, 9% serous, 7% clear cell). TTF-1 was less frequently expressed in low-grade endometrioid adenocarcinomas compared to other subtypes. Endometrioid adenocarcinomas which expressed TTF-1 had a statistically significant worse prognosis with poorer disease-specific survival, and this was also statistically significant in the group of low-grade endometrioid adenocarcinomas.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study confirms that TTF-1 is expressed in a small, but not insignificant, proportion of endometrial adenocarcinomas. TTF-1 positivity in low-grade endometrioid adenocarcinomas is an indicator of poorer prognosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Belfast, UK.
authors.forename: Aaron
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ervine
authors.forename: Sam
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.forename: C Blake
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Gilks
authors.forename: W Glenn
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: McCluggage
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D018269:Carcinoma, Endometrioid / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D011379:Prognosis; D000074482:Thyroid Nuclear Factor 1; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D014599:Uterus / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: C000614412:NKX2-1 protein, human; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D000074482:Thyroid Nuclear Factor 1; D014157:Transcription Factors
keywords: TTF-1; adenocarcinoma; endometrium; immunohistohemistry