Immunohistochemical detection of proliferating cell nuclear antigen in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Abstract

To investigate the expression levels of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and its correlation with the mitotic count, histological grade, and metastasis of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). PCNA expression was detected immunohistochemically with PC10 monoclonal antibody for 80 cases of HCC. The PCNA labeling index (LI) was assessed by counting the positively-stained nuclei per 500 cells. PCNA LI ranged from 1.8% to 91.4% (mean = 33.9%) in cancerous tissues, and was significantly related to the tumor size, histological grade, mitotic count and the metastases found in HCC samples. HCC Proliferation activity, as defined by PCNA immunohistochemical analysis, is strongly correlated with tumor invasiveness. These findings hold potential prognostic value for HCC patients.