Objective: To determine the prognostic significance of p53 and fragile histidine triad (FHIT) expression in advanced oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.
Study design: A retrospective collection of clinical data was correlated with the protein expression.
Method: The expression of p53 and FHIT in specimens from patients with previously untreated advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx was determined by immunohistochemistry. The expression of p53 and FHIT was statistically correlated with survival outcome. The primary endpoints were overall survival and disease-free survival.
Results: Thirty-four patients were analyzed in this study. Overexpression of p53 was observed in 41.2% (14/34) of tumors and was associated with a trend toward an improved overall survival using univariate (P =.1088, risk ratio [RR] = 0.503) and multivariate (P =.1533, RR = 0.470) analyses. Marked reduction or complete absence of FHIT expression was observed in 57.6% (19/33) of tumors. Patients with tumors showing no reduction in FHIT expression had a lower overall survival using univariate (P =.04, RR = 2.27) and multivariate (P =.013, RR = 4.41) analyses.
Conclusion: Overexpression of p53 predicted a trend toward an improved prognosis, whereas no reduction in FHIT expression predicted a significantly poorer outcome in patients with advanced oropharyngeal cancer.