Background: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the fatal cancers with a high incidence rate in Asia. Many genes including p53 and pRb play an important role in its carcinogenesis. Expressions of p53 and pRb proteins have been associated with prognosis of ESCC.
Objective: The study was undertaken to analyze the expressions of p53 and pRb with the various clinicopathological characteristics including stage and grade of ESCC.
Materials and methods: We examined 30 biopsy samples of ESCC for p53 and pRb protein expressions using immunohistochemistry. Immunointensity was classified as no immunostaining (-), weakly immunostaining (+), weak immunostaining (++) and strongly positive immunostaining (+++).
Results: Significant association was seen between positive p53 expression and tumor size (p=0.042), invasion to adventitia (p=0.009) and lymph node metastasis (p=0.014), and negative pRb expression was associated with invasion to the adventitia (p=0.015) and lymph node metastasis (p=0.003) There was significant association of p53+/ pRb- (n=11) with tumor invasion to adventitia (p=0.001), lymph node metastasis (p=0.0007) and TNM staging (p=0.042).
Conclusion: The study shows that p53 and pRb proteins, individually as well as synergistically, may serve as putative prognostic markers in ESCC.
Keywords: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma; Immunohistochemistry; Molecular alterations; Prognostic marker.