P57 kip2 immunohistochemistry: ancillary technique in hydatidiform moles diagnosis

Abstract

Background Gestational trophoblastic disease is a group of benign and malignant entities, where the hydatidiform mole is the most common, and can be divided into complete hydatidiform mole and partial hydatidiform mole. However, the histological criteria are still questionable and also, histologic evaluation alone is prone to great interobserver variability. In this way, inmunohistochemical analysis for p57 kip2 may be useful to aid in the diagnosis and classification of hydatidiform moles, with management and prognostic implications. p57 is the protein product of the paternally imprinted but maternally expressed gene CDKN1C. Because complete hydatidiform mole lack a maternal genomic component, an absence of p57 staining is specific for this pathology. This study looking for demonstrates the p57 kip2 immunohistochemistry as a technique useful in the differentiation between partial and complete hydatidiform mole.