Abstract
Overexpression of the tumour suppressor gene p53 was investigated immunohistochemically in 96 primary gastric carcinomas and 26 corresponding metastatic perigastric lymph nodes. Abnormalities in p53 expression were found in 52 (54%) of the 96 primary carcinomas. Tumours stained positively for p53 frequently metastasised to lymph nodes (the metastatic rate: 85%) compared to findings in those with negative p53 staining (64%, P < 0.05). Ninety-two percent (24/26) of the malignant cells in the lymph nodes stained positively for p53. When the DNA ploidy pattern of the tumour was determined by flow cytometry, the aneuploid tumours in p53 positive and negative groups accounted for 69% and 45%, respectively (P < 0.05). Proliferative activity of the tumour, as measured by Ki-67 labelling, was significantly higher (30.6 +/- 12.0%) in the p53 positive group than that (25.1 +/- 10.7%) in the p53 negative group (P < 0.05). Thus, gastric cancer with a mutant p53 has high proliferative activity and metastasis to lymph nodes will probably occur.
Highlights
Histology of excised tissues were examined in hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained preparations and classification was made according to the criteria of the Japanese Research Society for Gastric Cancer (1981)
In the present immunohistochemical study of human gastric cancer, we found that some diploid tumours or early stage gastric cancers showed an overexpression of p53, the possibility that mutation in this gene may occur, even in the early stage of cancer progression has to be considered
This notion is supported by the finding that p53 mutations were involved in the formation of both carcinomas and adenomas which occur in familial polyposis coli (Shirasawa et al, 1991)
Summary
This study included 96 unselected patients with primary gastric cancer, all of whom underwent gastrectomy with lymph node dissection in the Department of Surgery II in Kyushu University Hospital and affiliated hospitals in Fukuoka, Japan, from 1989 to 1990. No patient had been treated preoperatively with cytotoxic drugs. Histology of excised tissues were examined in hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained preparations and classification was made according to the criteria of the Japanese Research Society for Gastric Cancer (1981)
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