Perineural spread by squamous carcinomas of the head and neck: a morphological study using antiaxonal and antimyelin monoclonal antibodies.

Abstract

SUMMARY Perineural spread has been demonstrated histologically in 65/180 (36%) major surgical resections for squamous carcinomas of the head and neck; the incidence in a smaller necropsy series was 18/20 (90%). Perineural infiltration was observed most commonly in the vicinity of carcinomas arising in the buccal cavity (31/63, 50%) and, at all sites, it was most commonly encountered near tumours ¢2-5 cm in diameter. Perineural spread near cervical node metastases was, by contrast, uncommon cinomas of the major and minor salivary glands, but it is also a common feature of squamous carcinomas:5-9 The purpose of the present paper is twofold: (i) to record the incidence of perineural infiltration in a large series of squamous cancers of the head and neck, drawn from both surgical and necropsy material; (ii) to describe the detailed histopathology of the infiltrated nerves using two monoclonal antibodies directed against axonal and myelin components of human nervous tissue.

Perineural Invasion Independent Prognostic Factors in Patients with Gastric Cancer Undergoing Curative Resection

“…In otherwise PNI rate were much higher in pancreatic cancer (70-100%) and 75-85% in biliary tract cancer (Nagakawa et al, 1993;Seki et al, 1993). It is reported to be crucial route for the local spread of tumour associated with poor prognosis in head and neck, prostate, pancreas and biliary tract cancers (Carter et al, 1983;Ueno, 2001).…”

“…PNI is often seen in carcinomas head and neck, prostate, pancreas and biliary tract but is relatively rare is rectal carcinomas and it is reported to be crucial route for the local spread of tumour associated with poor prognosis in head and neck, prostate, pancreas and biliary tract cancers (Carter et al, 1983;Ueno, 2001). However, the prognostic importance of PNI in gastric cancer has been evaluated in a few studies.…”

Perineural Spread of Distant Squamous Cell Carcinoma to the Orbit: A Case Report and Review

“…The tumor travels in the perineural space, a tissue plane of low resistance often for great distances. There is little tendency to infiltrate the actual nerve bundles -the segmental paresthesias are caused by local compression from the tumor within the perineural space, causing local infarction of the nerve [4]. These features were identified in our histopathological sections.…”

Perineural spread of cutaneous malignancy to the brain

“…"Invading" tumor cells tend to be localized to the nerve periphery, at the perineurium and endoneurium, generally without much invasion of the nerve fiber proper. 8 In the modern era, identification of PNI is facilitated by the horizontally cut frozen sections from Mohs micrographic surgery. 2,3 The chronicity of PNS displays considerable variation.…”