ISSN:
1600-0714
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Background: Deranged expression and function of the E-cadherin/β-catenin (E-cad/β-cat) complex and the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) have been implicated in the development and progression of carcinomas.Methods: To estimate the role of these molecules in oral cancer, we investigated 75 primary oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs) with adjacent normal and/or dysplastic mucosa, 30 paired metastases and 12 recurrences by immunohistochemistry.Results: All three molecules were constitutionally expressed in the basal/parabasal layers of tumour adjacent ‘normal’ epithelium, in contrast to a significant increase of EGFR and heterogeneous expression of E-cad/β-cat in dysplasia. In OSCCs, over-expression of EGFR correlated significantly with lower tumour grade and poor prognosis, loss of E-cad was a significant marker for shortened survival, reduced β-cat staining was a predictive marker for lymph node metastasis.Conclusions: There is a perturbance in intercellular adhesion molecules and EGFR expression/function in oral cancer with major clinical impact. E-cad and β-cat seem to inhibit EGFR to enhance the progression of OSCCs.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0714.2002.00147.x
Permalink
