The pattern and spread of invasion can predict late cervical lymph node metastasis in early tongue squamous cell carcinoma.

To determine the predictive indexes of late cervical lymph node metastasis in early tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC). We retrospectively analyzed the cases of 25 patients with stage I/II TSCC who had undergone surgical treatment without elective neck dissection. We evaluated the relationships between clinicopathologic factors and the occurrence of late cervical lymph node metastasis. Of the 25 cases, metastasis to the cervical lymph nodes was observed in nine cases (36.0%). The clinicopathological factors associated with late cervical lymph node metastasis were the mode of invasion (MOI, p = 0.032), depth of invasion (DOI, p = 0.004), and perineural invasion (PNI, p = 0.040). A multivariate analysis revealed that only the DOI was an independent predictor of late cervical lymph node metastasis. The combination of the DOI and MOI or the PNI and MOI was significantly correlated with late cervical lymph node metastasis (p = 0.004 and p = 0.012, respectively). Our findings suggest that combinations of the MOI, DOI, and PNI could be used as an index for predicting late cervical lymph node metastasis in early TSCC.

Significance of tumour budding and invasive characteristics in grading of oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Tumour budding has been recognized as a morphologic marker of tumour invasion. Invasive characteristics such as depth of invasion, mode of invasion and worst pattern of invasion are potentially powerful parameters predicting the regional metastasis. Aim: This study was done to understand the significance of tumour budding and various characteristics of invasion and their impact on grading of oral squamous cell carcinoma. Materials and Methods: An immunohistochemical study was performed on tissue sections obtained from 34 paraffin-embedded blocks of clinically and histologically diagnosed cases of oral squamous cell carcinoma. The sections were stained with pan cytokeratin and observed under high power magnification. Results: Tumour budding and the invasive patterns were found to be significant in OSCC. A proposed grading system based on tumour budding and cell nest was found to have a significant correlation with the WHO grading system. Conclusion: This study demonstrated the importance of using tumour buds as an additional parameter in the grading system and also assessed the importance of invasive patterns, cellular atypia and stromal contents in OSCC.

Correlative study of tumor budding, mode of invasion and lymphocytic host response with known clinicopathological prognostic factors in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a significant public health problem in India, accounting to 30% of all cancers with a worrying rise in incidence and related mortality. Invasive tumor front (ITF) of OSCC has been an area of histopathologic research interest, where parameters like tumor budding (TB), mode of invasion (MOI) and lymphocytic host response (LHR) are being evaluated extensively. OBJECTIVES: The aim is to study and evaluate the possible association of ITF histological parameters such as TB, LHR and MOI with known clinicopathological prognostic factors in cases of OSCC. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We reviewed and analyzed 69 cases of OSCC for routine clinicopathological parameters, TB, MOI and LHR for any significant correlation (P < 0.05 by Chi-square test) with each other and with outcome in cases where follow-up was available. RESULTS: TB correlated significantly with histological grade, worst pattern of invasion (WPOI), Lymphnodal involvement (LNI), Lymphovascular invasion (LVI), Perineural invasion (PNI) and age; MOI correlated with WPOI, LNI, LVI and PNI; and LHR significantly correlated with WPOI, PNI, Tumor size (pT) and outcome. TB showed a strong correlation with MOI (P < 0.001) and LHR; and no significant association was noted between LHR and MOI. Among all the clinicopathological parameters, depth of invasion, pT, WPOI, PNI and LHR showed significant correlation with outcome. CONCLUSION: TB, MOI and LHR showed good correlation with established parameters and as they are easy and helps in prognostication, they should be included in routine histopathological reporting guidelines.

Soft drug-resistant ovarian cancer cells migrate via two distinct mechanisms utilizing myosin II-based contractility.

The failure of chemotherapeutic drugs in treatment of various cancers is attributed to the acquisition of drug resistance. However, the migration mechanisms of drug-resistant cancer cells remain incompletely understood. Here we address this question from a biophysical perspective by mapping the phenotypic alterations in ovarian cancer cells (OCCs) resistant to cisplatin and paclitaxel. We show that cisplatin-resistant (CisR), paclitaxel-resistant (PacR) and dual drug-resistant (i.e., resistant to both drugs) OCCs are more contractile and softer than drug-sensitive cells. Protease inhibition suppresses invasion of CisR cells but not of PacR cells, indicative of a protease-dependent mode of migration in CisR cells and a protease-independent mode of migration in PacR. Despite these differences, actomyosin contractility, mediated by the RhoA-ROCK2-Myosin II signaling pathway, regulates both modes of migration. Confined migration experiments establish the role of myosin IIA and IIB in mediating nuclear translocation and regulation of proteolytic activity. Collectively, our results highlight the importance of myosin II as a potential therapeutic target for treatment of drug-resistant ovarian cancer cells.

Expression of cell adhesion molecules in laryngeal carcinoma - preliminary analysis.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Intercellular adhesion molecules present in immunocompetent cells as well as endothelium and tumour cells can regulate cell migration, angiogenesis, apoptosis, proliferation, and metastases in solid tumours. The aim of this study was to analyse the sICAM-1 (soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1) and sVCAM-1 (soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule 1) expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) cultures, and to find their relationships with clinicomorphological characteristics in laryngeal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The analysis included a group of 50 patients with verified squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx. The control group constituted 30 healthy volunteers. The pathological assessment included pTNM, stage, histological grade, and type of invasion according to the tumour front grading. The expression of adhesion molecules was assessed using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: Increased expression of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 was an indicator of more aggressive laryngeal carcinomas. More advanced local changes evaluated on the pT feature were connected with a higher sVCAM-1 (p = 0.017), but not sICAM-1 level. The presence of lymph node metastases correlated with a higher expression of adhesion molecules (p = 0.012 and p = 0.003, for sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1, respectively). Tumours with more diffuse growth and infiltrating with small cell groups (< 15/hpf) was characterised by the highest level of adhesive proteins (p = 0.001 and p = 0.02 for sICAM and sVCAM, respectively). Moreover, lower levels of sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1 were observed more frequently in patients who lived longer than five years after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The study indicates the importance of the sICAM and sVCAM expression as indicators of advanced changes and prognosis in patients with laryngeal carcinoma.