Immunohistochemical investigation of tumorigenic pathways in sinonasal intestinal-type adenocarcinoma. A tissue microarray analysis of 62 cases.

Alessandro Franchi (1) , Annarita Palomba (2) , Cristina Fondi (1) , Lucia Miligi (3) , Milena Paglierani (2) , Monica Pepi (1) , Marco Santucci (1)

1 Division of Anatomic Pathology, Department of Critical Care Medicine and Surgery, University of Florence Medical School
2 Unit of Histopathology
3 ISPO - Cancer Prevention and Research Institute

Aims. Sinonasal intestinal type adenocarcinoma (ITAC) is an uncommon neoplasm morphologically similar to colorectal adenocarcinoma, with a well recognized association with occupational exposure to wood or leather dusts. Here, we analyse several gene products with pivotal roles in tumourigenesis, including p53, p16, deleted in colon cancer (DCC), retinoblastoma, adenomatous polyposis coli, β-catenin, E-cadherin, and CD10, and discuss their relation to clinical behaviour and to similar pathways in colorectal adenocarcinomas. Methods and Results. Immunohistochemical analysis of 62 ITACs was conducted on a tissue microarray. Aberrant expression of p53 and p16 were the most commonly observed alterations (61.3% and 64.5% of cases, respectively). Analysis according to the histologic subtype showed that p53 overexpression was less frequent in mucinous ITACs (35.3% vs. 71.1%, p=0.018), while loss of DCC and E-cadherin were more frequently observed in this subtype (76.5% vs. 31.1%, p=0.002, and 82.4% vs 31.1%, p<0.001, respectively). No correlation was found between the aberrant expression of the above mentioned proteins and clinical behavior, while mucinous adenocarcinomas had a significantly worse prognosis, with shorter disease free interval and overall survival (p=0.005 and p<0.001, respectively). Conclusions. Mucinous ITACs appear to follow a distinct molecular pathway(s) from the non-mucinous variants, and pursue an aggressive clinical behavior.

Mots clés: Medicine

Alessandro Franchi, Annarita Palomba, Cristina Fondi, Lucia Miligi, Milena Paglierani, et al.. Immunohistochemical investigation of tumorigenic pathways in sinonasal intestinal-type adenocarcinoma. A tissue microarray analysis of 62 cases.. Histopathology, 2011, 59 (1), pp.98. ⟨10.1111/j.1365-2559.2011.03887.x⟩. ⟨hal-00651160⟩