RESUMEN
BACKGROUND/AIM: This study analyzed moesin immunoexpression in 91 lip squamous cell carcinomas and its influence in patients' prognosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Moesin immunoexpression was evaluated at the invasive tumor front by a semi-quantitative score method. The association of moesin with the clinicopathological variables was analyzed by the Chi-square test, the survival rates were calculated by Kaplan-Meier and the survival curves compared using the log-rank test. RESULTS: The expression of moesin was strong at the invasive tumor front and weak/negative in differentiated cells such as keratin pearls. There was no association between moesin expression and the clinicopathological variables, but there was a tendency for patients with lip cancer and strong moesin expression to have lower 5- and 10-year overall and disease-free survival rates. CONCLUSION: Our results confirm the participation of moesin in oral carcinogenesis and suggest that this protein can influence the survival rates of patients with lip squamous cell carcinoma.