The Immunohistochemical Study on the Expression of p53 Tumor Suppressor Gene in the Gastric Adenocarcinoma

Won, Young Hwan; Lee, Ok Jae; Kim, Young Chai

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Mutation and overexpression of the p53 gene have been noted in a wide range of human cancers and are thought to play a role in malignant transformation. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between the p53 protein and the clinicopathologic factors of p53 in the gastric adenocarcinoma.
METHODS
We examined p53 expression in paraffin-embedded tissues from 192 gastric adenocarcinomas including 47 early gastric can:ers with an avidin-biotin peroxidase rnethod, using monoclonal antibody against the p53 protein.
RESULTS
The positive staining reactivity was observed in 33 of 192 (17.2%) gastric adenoc:arcinomas including 29 of 145 (20.0%) advanced gastric cancers and 4 of 47 (8.5%) early gastric cancers. The association between p53 protein expression and clinicopathological factors such as age, sex, tumor size, Borrmanns type, Laurens classification, Mings classification, and histologic differenciation was not observed. But the tendency that expression of p53 protein was rnuch prominent in advanced gastric cancer and advanced TNM stage. The rates of p53 expression were higher in the groups with lymph node metastasis (p0.02) and serosal invasion (p0.05) than the groups without lymph node metastasis and serosal invasion.
CONCLUSIONS
It is considered tbat p53 protein expression has a possible role in progression and metastasis of gastric adenocarcinoma.