Immunophenotyping of serous carcinoma of the female genital tract

Abstract

To update the data on the expression of 'mesothelioma markers' by serous carcinomas of various sites we have studied cases from ovary (n ¼ 56), endometrium (n ¼ 37), fallopian tube (n ¼ 6), primary peritoneum (n ¼ 5) and cervix (n ¼ 3) using a panel of antibodies (WT1, P53, estrogen receptors, HER2/neu, D2-40, cytokeratin 5/6 and E-cadherin). Ovarian carcinomas demonstrated D2-40 and cytokeratin 5/6 immunoreactivity in 23.2 and 55.4% of cases, respectively. Endometrial carcinomas demonstrated D2-40 and cytokeratin 5/6 immunoreactivity in 43.2 and 37.8% of cases, respectively. D2-40 staining pattern was predominantly focal; however, strong reactivity was identified in 16.2% of endometrial and 10.7% of ovarian carcinomas. HER2/neu oncoprotein overexpression was demonstrated in 7 of 37 (18.9%) uterine serous carcinomas. In contrast, all the serous carcinomas of the other sites were HER2/neu negative. The proportion of positive cases was significantly different in ovarian vs endometrial carcinomas regarding WT1 (P ¼ 0.0458), estrogen receptors (Po0.001) reactivity and HER2/neu overexpression (P ¼ 0.0025). D2-40 and cytokeratin 5/6 are expressed in a considerable proportion of serous carcinomas and should be used cautiously in a 'mesothelioma panel' in situations where serous carcinoma is in the differential diagnosis. HER2/neu was exclusively overexpressed in serous carcinomas of endometrial origin.

E-cadherin nuclear staining is useful for the diagnosis of ovarian adult granulosa cell tumor

“…Previously, E-cadherin expression in a total of 780 cases of serous and 149 cases of endometrioid adenocarcinoma of the ovary was investigated using a variety of antibodies [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28]. The nuclear expression of E-cadherin has never been described in the literature, although varying degrees of membranous staining have been observed [17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28].…”

Value of PAX8, PAX2, claudin-4, and h-caldesmon immunostaining in distinguishing peritoneal epithelioid mesotheliomas from serous carcinomas

“…ER and PR have been reported to be frequently expressed in carcinomas of the breast, ovary, and endometrium. 11,[40][41][42] The percentage of ER and PR positivity reported in serous carcinomas of the ovary and peritoneum has ranged from 80 to 95% (Table 3) 7,9-11,35 and 29 to 65% (Table 4), 7,9,11,35 respectively. Several studies have been published on the expression of ER and PR in epithelioid mesotheliomas.…”

“…[8][9][10]57 The percentage of positivity reported for these markers in serous carcinomas is much lower, ranging from 2 to 26% for thrombomodulin (Table 10), [5][6][7][8][9][10] 0 to 40% for calretinin (Table 11), 5-10,14,56 and 13 to 65% for podoplanin (Table 12). [8][9][10]42,57 Caldesmon, an actin-interacting and calmodulinbinding protein found in smooth muscle cells and other cell types, has an important role in the regulation of smooth muscle and non-smooth muscle contraction. [58][59][60][61][62] Two human caldesmon isoforms, which are generated from a single gene by alternative splicing and which differ in their molecular weight, electrophoretic mobility, and cellular distribution, have been identified.…”

Evaluating the progenitor cells of ovarian cancer: analysis of current animal models

“…Mutations in p53 are found in greater than 50% of human serous ovarian cancers, and a recent study demonstrated that 48% of chicken ovarian carcinomas also contained mutations in p53 (47). Overexpression of HER-2/neu was increased in ovarian carcinomas from hens, and in humans, an increase in HER-2/neu expression is commonly associated with progression of primary fallopian tube carcinoma as well as HGSC (47)(48)(49).…”