Expression of E-cadherin and Ki-67 in canine apocrine and sebaceous gland tumors

Abstract

A histopathological analysis of 13 apocrine gland tumors and 22 sebaceous gland tumors in dogs was performed, which were submitted to the Department of Veterinary Pathology from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2012. An association between the immunohistochemical expression of E-cadherin and Ki-67, the type, and the biological behavior of the tumors was investigated. The mean age of dogs with apocrine gland tumors was 10.15 years, and 10.91 years for sebaceous gland tumors. According to the histopathological analysis, 53.8% carcinomas and 46.2% adenomas of the apocrine glands were found. In the sebaceous gland tumors, epitheliomas were dominant (50.0%), followed by adenomas (36.4%) and carcinomas (13.6%). Survival time in dogs with sebaceous gland tumors was shortest in patients with diagnosed epitheliomas, intermediate in adenomas, and longest in carcinomas. The incidence of metastases was low in the groups with sebaceous adenomas and epitheliomas, and recurrence was most common in carcinomas. The average survival time was about the same for apocrine gland adenomas and carcinomas, with a higher incidence of metastases and recurrence for carcinomas. Immunohistochemical analysis of E-cadherin and Ki-67 expression confirmed the efficiency of this method for the accurate histological classification of apocrine and especially sebaceous gland tumors. The analyzes performed showed that the location and intensity of E-cadherin expression can be helpful in predicting the biological behavior of sebaceous gland tumors. In contrast to sebaceous gland tumors, the analysis of apocrine gland tumors showed that there was no correlation between E-cadherin expression and the biological behavior of apocrine gland tumors.