CD44, an integral membrane glycoprotein has diverse functions in cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and may be a determinant of metastatic and invasive behavior in carcinomas. The expression of CD44 in 86 female breast carcinomas was examined by immunohistochemistty using the monoclonal mouse antihuman phagocytic glycoprotein-1, CD44 (clone DF 1485) on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue. The CD44 expression was studied in correlation with the expression of basement membrane (BM) antigen (type IV collagen, laminin), fibronectin, cathepsin D, p53, c-erbB-2, proliferative activity Ki-67, PCNA), steroid receptor content, as well as with other conventional clinicopathological parameters in breast cancer. CD44 expression was observed in variable amounts in the epithelial cells of the control group (cases of fibrocystic and benign proliferative-breast disease). CD44 expression showed a heterogeneous pattern, such as small foci amounting t o less than 5% of the total cells in a given section, or larger clusters of tumor cells weakly or strongly stained. A greater proportion of the tumor stained in a patchy pattern. Seventy-two point six percent of tumors showed CD44 expression (>5% of neoplastic cells). In 10.9% of the cancer, more than 90% of the cancer cells stained positively for CD44. High values of CD44 were correlated with lymphnode involvement (p = 0.006) and progesterone receptor content (p = 0.02). There was no significant correlation between CD44 expression and the other clinicopathological parameters, including tumor size, age of patient, histological type, tumor grade and estrogen receptor content as well as with the other prognostic parameters.These findings suggest that the CD44 expression in breast cancer is independent of the expression of extracellular components, the proteolytic enzyme cathepsin D, and the growth fraction of tumor, but may be useful for monitoring human-breast metastasis.D44 is a cell surface receptor for hyaluronate sug-C gesting a role in the regulation of cell and cell-substrate interactions as well as cell migration ( 1 ) . The
The incidence of monoclonal gammopathy in 61 patients with chronic myeloproliferative disorders (CMPD) was studied. The distribution of patients among the CMPD subgroups was: chronic myelocytic leukemia, 24 patients; myelofibrosis, 11; polycythemia vera, 15; essential thrombocythemia, 7; unclassified MPD, 4 patients. Monoclonal gammopathy was found in 5 patients (8.2%). Two of these patients (1 IgA/k and 1 IgM/k) had myelofibrosis and 3 (2 IgG/k and 1 IgG/lambda) polycythemia vera. The presence of monoclonal gammopathy indicates an involvement of the lymphoplasmatic system in CMPD.
Despite its potential for important aid in accurate diagnosis, standard application of immunohistochemistry in prostate biopsy is not justified and should be reserved for equivocal cases where conventional pathology fails to be conclusive.
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