Thursday, October 20th, 2005.

Diagnostic Cytopathology. Volume 33, Issue 5 , Pages 332 - 337. Published Online: 20 Oct 2005. [Link]

Reuven Reich, Ph.D. ^{1 2}, Lina Vintman, M.Sc. ¹, Søren Nielsen, C.T. ³, Janne Kærn, M.D., Ph.D. ⁴, Carlos Bedrossian, M.D., F.I.A.C. ⁵, Aasmund Berner, M.D., Ph.D. ⁶, Ben Davidson, M.D., Ph.D. ^{6 *}

1. ¹Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
2. ²The David R. Bloom Center for Pharmacy, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel
3. ³Department of Pathology, Aalborg Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark
4. ⁴Department of Gynecologic Oncology, The Norwegian Radium Hospital, University of Oslo, Norway
5. ⁵Department of Pathology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Chicago, Illinois
6. ⁶Department of Pathology, The Norwegian Radium Hospital, University of Oslo, Norway

email: Ben Davidson (bend@ulrik.uio.no)

Abstract

Expression of the 67-kd laminin receptor (67-kd LR) has been reported in a wide range of carcinomas, in many of which it correlated with poor differentiation, metastasis, disease progression, and poor survival. Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is a locally aggressive and highly lethal tumor of serosal cavities that is rarely associated with clinically detectable metastasis to distant organs. The aim of this study was to analyze the expression of the 67-kd LR in epithelioid MM and carcinomas in effusions. Effusions from patients diagnosed with ovarian (=24) and breast (=38) adenocarcinomas and MM (=24) (total = 86) were analyzed for 67-kd LR protein expression, using immunocytochemistry. The 67-kd LR mRNA expression was additionally analyzed in 21 MM effusions using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Protein expression of the 67-kd LR was frequently detected in carcinomas (19/24 ovarian tumors, 79%; 15/38 breast tumors, 39%), but was rare in MM (2/24 cases, 8%), despite the presence of mRNA transcripts for the receptor in all 21 specimens studied using RT-PCR. Nine benign effusions that were additionally studied for protein expression were uniformly negative, as were all reactive mesothelial cells in malignant effusions. Our results suggest that the 67-kd LR may aid in the differential diagnosis between metastatic carcinoma, mainly of ovarian origin, and MM. They additionally suggest that the failure of MM to express the 67-kd LR protein, as opposed to the frequent expression in carcinomas with proven metastatic capacity, may be one of the factors contributing to the reduced ability of the former tumor to metastasize to distant organs.

Glossary

oncology

(on-call-o-jee) the branch of medicine concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

metastasis

(meh-tas-teh-sis) the spread of cancer cells to distant areas of the body by way of the lymph system or bloodstream.

differentiation

(dif-er-en-she-A-shun) the normal process through which cells mature so they can carry out the jobs they were meant to do. Cancer cells are poorly differentiated.

diagnosis

identifying a disease by its signs or symptoms, and by using imaging procedures and laboratory findings. The earlier a diagnosis of cancer is made, the better the chance for long-term survival.

carcinoma

(car-sin-o-ma) a malignant tumor that begins in the lining layer (epithelial cells) of organs. At least 80% of all cancers are carcinomas.

benign

(be-nine) not cancer; not malignant.

tumor

an abnormal lump or mass of tissue. Tumors can be benign (not cancerous) or malignant (cancerous).

mesothelioma

a tumor derived from mesothelial tissue, such as the peritoneum (lining the abdomen) or pleura (lining the lungs). More on mesothelioma.

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