Heparanase Expression in HNSCC Are Associated With Reduced Proliferation And Improved Survival

Carolin Mogler (1) , Christel Herold-Mende (2) , Gerhard Dyckhoff (3) , Ekkehart Jenetzky (4) , Philipp Beckhove (4) , Burkhard M Helmke (5)

1 Pathology
2 Department of Neurosurgery,
3 Head and Neck Surgery
4 DKFZ - German Cancer Research Center - Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum [Heidelberg]
5 Institute of Pathology

Aims: Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) are characterized by a poor prognosis. Cellular expression of heparanase, a degrading enzyme of the extracellular matrix (ECM), was associated with poorer prognosis in several cancers. In the present analysis we aimed to analyze its role for tumor growth and patient outcome in HNSCC. Methods & Results: We analyzed expression of the active form of heparanase in 71 human HNSCC using immunohistochemistry. Results were compared with clinicopathological data. Additionally, 65 cases of the study samples were stained against the proliferation marker MIB1. Cellular heparanase expression was detected in 41 of 71 (57.74%) cases, especially UICC IV-staged tumors showed high heparanase levels. Heparanase was localized mainly in the cytoplasm, to a lesser extent at the cell membrane. High levels of heparanase were significantly correlated with an almost 4-fold decrease of MIB1 labeling (p = 0.006). Comparison with clinical outcome revealed that patients with heparanase expression showed prolonged overall survival (p = 0.029). Conclusions: Although heparanase was mainly found in late stage HNSCCs, cellular heparanase expression in HNSCC significantly prolonged overall survival. We assume that the proliferation-reducing effect of high heparanase levels might outweigh tumor-promoting effects of heparanase, especially in advanced tumors.

Mots clés: Medicine

Carolin Mogler, Christel Herold-Mende, Gerhard Dyckhoff, Ekkehart Jenetzky, Philipp Beckhove, et al.. Heparanase Expression in HNSCC Are Associated With Reduced Proliferation And Improved Survival. Histopathology, 2011, 58 (6), pp.944. ⟨10.1111/j.1365-2559.2011.03834.x⟩. ⟨hal-00642393⟩