Abstract 6509: Panel of CD-34, CD-105 & vimentin in immunohistochemical & histomorphometric analysis for prognostic evaluation of oral potentially malignant lesions
Authors: SP Saravanan 
Published: April 2023

Introduction: The Angiogenic Theory, proposed by Folkman in 1971, is one of the most widely recognized ideas in carcinogenesis, which is a complicated and dynamic process. This emphasized the fact that tumor growth occurs at a certain density of new blood vessels during angiogenesis. However, whereas many of vascular markers are well understood in established oral malignancies, their relevance in oral premalignant lesions remains unknown.

Materials and Methods: Prospectively, 54 patients with potentially oral malignant lesions (POML) were observed for three years. These patient’s paraffin blocks were subjected to immunohistochemical and histomorphometric examination with CD34 and CD105 (Endoglin), as well as qualitative analysis with Vimentin. All patients provided written informed consent to subject the blocks to immunohistochemical analysis, as well as the necessity of 3 monthly visits up to 3 years follow up to assess the malignant transformation potential. In case of clinical suspicion, a repeat biopsy was performed to rule out malignancy.

Results: With a sample size of 54, the clinical and histological parameters were evaluated using the paired 't' test, validating the underlying normality assumption. During the three-year follow-up period, 52% (n=28/54) of the total patients developed oral malignancies. The most commonly detected was Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma with the most common site being Gingivo-Buccal Sulcus area. The microvessel

density was dramatically boosted in premalignant stage samples utilizing CD34 and CD105. In PMOL, the mean Vascular Caliber (VC) using CD 34 and CD 105 (µm2) was 7.7 ± 1.9 µm2 and 7.1 ± 1.4 µm2, respectively. The mean VC - CD 34 and CD105 did not differ statistically (P-value&gt;0.05). More than 50% of individuals with malignant transformation have shown increased vimentin expression in connective tissue of the premalignant stage samples (P-value0.001).

Conclusion: The use of CD 34 and CD105 markers to assess micro vessel density and vessel morphometry was found to be useful in predicting the malignant transformation potential of POML. The combination of these two markers, coupled with Vimentin, was proven to be a successful IHC PANEL for predicting the malignant transformation potential of oral premalignant lesions well in advance of 1.5 ± 2.5 years. In diagnosed cancer patients, increased CD105 expression was also associated with lymph node metastases. As a result, CD34, Endoglin, and Vimentin are proposed as IHC Panel Markers to determine the prognosis of potentially malignant oral lesions.

Citation Format: Saravanan SP. Panel of CD-34, CD-105 & vimentin in immunohistochemical & histomorphometric analysis for prognostic evaluation of oral potentially malignant lesions [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 6509.