Objective: To study the expression of cluster of differentiation 74 (CD74) in PCa and its clinical significance.
Methods: Using immunohistochemical staining, we detected the expression of CD74 in 56 samples of PCa tissue and 55 samples of the adjacent BPH tissue.
Results: The rates of CD74 expression in the epithelial and stromal cells were 48.2% and 82.3% in the PCa tissue compared with 62.7% and 83.6% in the adjacent BPH tissue, with statistically significant difference between the two types of cells (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01), and those in the stromal cells of the PCa tissue with Gleason score ≤7 or >7 were 44.0% versus 80.8% (P < 0.05), while those in the epithelial cells of the PCa tissue with Gleason score ≤7 or >7 were 36.7% versus 61.5% (P > 0.01). CD74 was overexpressed in the poorly differentiated PCa cells and the surrounding stromal cells.
Conclusions: CD74 may play an important role in the development and invasiveness of PCa, and is expected to be a prognostic indicator of the malignancy.
Keywords: Gleason score; benign prostate hyperplasia; cluster of differentiation 74; prostate cancer.