Nucleolar protein p120 expression in oral carcinoma.

Nucleolar protein p120 is a proliferation-associated antigen expressed by cells in early G1 phase, identified by the monoclonal antibody FB-2. Its expression has been evaluated in breast and prostate cancer, and proved to be significantly correlated with other prognostic parameters. In oral pathology, p120 protein content is able to distinguish between non-neoplastic and malignant lesions. In the present study, the immunohistochemical expression of p120 protein was evaluated in fifty cases of oral squamous carcinoma and compared with histological grading, pTNM staging, DNA ploidy status and follow-up of the patients, in order to establish its prognostic value, p120 mean area was significantly correlated to all these parameters, apart from lymph node involvement, indicating the strong predictive potential of this marker. In conclusion, quantitative immunohistochemical analysis of p120 protein represents an easy and reliable method for the assessment of clinical outcome and the definition of risk groups in oral carcinoma.

[Fine needle aspiration in the cytologic diagnosis of swellings in the parotid and submandibular regions. Cytologic-histologic correlations in 49 cases]. / Diagnosi citologica mediante aspirazione con ago sottile di tumefazioni della regione parotidea e sottomandibolare. Correlazione cito-istologica in 49 casi.

Fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) has been widely used for a number of years and offers considerable advantages in comparison to conventional surgical biopsy. A number of organs can be subject to this diagnostic procedure with good results, including the salivary glands. This paper aimed to compare the cytological diagnosis of biopsy material obtained using FNAB and the subsequent histological diagnosis formulated after surgery in 49 patients with swellings in the parotid or submandibular region who were referred to the Department of Anatomy and Pathological Histology in L'Aquila. Cytohistological concordance was present in 87.7% of the cases in this series, a percentage that is in line with that reported by other authors. The most frequent causes of diagnostic error may be ascribed to moderate nodule size and/or the scanty material obtained not suitable for diagnosis. In this series all cases of malignant neoplasia were correctly diagnosed. In spite of the limitations of this method, the authors consider that it plays an important role in the preoperative diagnosis of salivary gland pathologies.