Diagnostic utility of C-kit protein (CD117) expression in differentiating adenoid cystic carcinoma and polymorphous low grade Adenocarcinoma

Abstract

Background & Objective:To evaluate usefulness of immunohistochemical marker C-kit (CD117) in differentiating Adenoid cystic carcinoma (AdCC) from Polymorphous low-grade adenocarcinoma (PLGA) in patients of salivary gland carcinomas. AdCC is a malignant salivary gland neoplasm with poor prognosis. PLGA is a salivary gland malignancy with indolent growth pattern. Differentiating between the two entities is a diagnostic challenge. We evaluated the role of C-kit in differentiating the two.Methods:This is a Cross sectional study. Samples of 19 tumors including 12 AdCC and 4 PLGA was evaluated at Department of Histopathology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi from December 2015 to August 2016. Immunohistochemical techniques were used to analyze the level of c-kit expression in AdCC (n = 12), polymorphous low-grade adenocarcinoma (PLGA) (n = 6). Samples were stained using monoclonal antibody against C-kit. Statistical analysis of the data was done using SPSS version 21.Results:Strong diffuse cytoplasmic reactivity was observed in more than 50% of the tumor cells of AdCC whereas less than 20% of cells showed negative to weak positivity in PLGA. Hence, the difference in the expression of c-kit between AdCC and PLGA was statistically significant (p value <0.002).Conclusions:CD117 expression itself can be used as a marker in differential diagnosis of salivary gland neoplasms. However, the percentage of the CD117 immunoreactive cells and the staining intensities appeared to be important factors in distinguishing AdCC from PLGA.

Molecularly guided treatment of metastatic parotid gland carcinoma in adults

“…The observed genomic aberrations and overexpression of AR, KIT, and EGFR, PTEN, p-mTOR, and PDGFRA in PGC in this analysis are in keeping with previous studies [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33]. The rationale for the therapy recommendation with ADT was corroborated by a study by Boon et al They studied the application of ADT in 35 patients with androgen receptor-positive advanced salivary duct carcinoma, which lead to a median overall survival (OS) of 17 months versus 5 months in 43 patients receiving best supportive care [34].…”

Immunohistochemical Study of Cancer Stem Cell marker, Tight Junction Protein, and Lymphatic Density in Malignant Salivary Gland Tumors

“…A similar result was compatible with the work of Salehinejad et al [18]. Who clarified the role of mutated c-kit as a promotor for this tumor; on the contrary, it was disagreement with Tariq et al [19], who found c-kit immunoexpression may be used as a helpful marker to distinguish AdCC from PAC in cases where the diagnosis can be challenging. In this light, a distinct pattern of c-kit immunostaining can also be a proper ancillary method for further differentiation between both tumors, as noticed in our results.…”

Clinical and Prognostic Significance of CD117 in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Systemic Meta-Analysis

“…Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a special subpopulation of cancer cells, which are responsible for the major capabilities of self-renewal and uncontrolled proliferation and dif-ferentiation, and increasing evidence suggests that CSCs contribute to cancer metastasis, a worse prognosis, and resistance to chemotherapy or radiation therapy [5][6][7]. Cluster of differentiation 117 (CD117), termed c-kit proto-oncogene, encoded by the c-kit gene, and located on human chromosome 4q11-12, belongs to a type-III transmembrane receptor tyrosine kinase [8,9]. CD117 could act as a receptor for stem cell factor and plays an important role in maintaining cellular and biological functions such as cell survival, metabolism, cell growth and progression, proliferation, apoptosis, cell migration, cell differentiation, cell adhesion, and chemotaxis [10,11].…”