The significance of stem cell marker LGR5 and VEGF expression in esophageal carcinoma

Objective: Evaluation of the expression of the intestinal stem cell marker (LGR5) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in esophageal adenocarcinomas (EAC) with and without Barrett esophagus (BE) and in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and to correlate them with clinicopathological data. Materials and methods: Expression of the putative intestinal stem cell markers LgR5 and VEGF was analyzed immunohistochemically in 12 cases of BE, 12 cases of BE with dysplasia, 12 cases of EAC with BE, 18 cases of EAC without BE, and 20 cases of ESCCs. Results: LgR5 was overexpressed in 50% of BE without dysplasia, in 82.3% of BE with dysplasia, and in 100% of EAC with and without BE. In contrast, LgR5 was found to be not overexpressed in any of the ESCC. A significant correlation was found between LGR5 and lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, the depth of invasion, and the stage of the adenocarcinoma (P
Source: Egyptian Journal of Pathology - Category: Pathology Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research