Open AccessHistological and prognostic importance of CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + expression in clinical pancreatic cancer
Author(s) -
Ohara Yusuke,
Oda Tatsuya,
Sugano Masato,
Hashimoto Shinji,
Enomoto Tsuyoshi,
Yamada Keiichi,
Akashi Yoshimasa,
Miyamoto Ryoichi,
Kobayashi Akihiko,
Fukunaga Kiyoshi,
Morishita Yukio,
Ohkohchi Nobuhiro
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
cancer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.035
H-Index - 141
eISSN - 1349-7006
pISSN - 1347-9032
DOI - 10.1111/cas.12198
Subject(s) - cd24 , pancreatic cancer , cd44 , cancer research , epithelial cell adhesion molecule , immunohistochemistry , medicine , clinical significance , cancer stem cell , cancer , pathology , oncology , biology , cell , genetics
CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + cells have been reported to be cancer stem cells in pancreatic cancer; however, the histological and clinical importance of these cells has not yet been investigated. Here we clarified the characteristics of CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + cells in clinical specimens of pancreatic cancer using immunohistochemical assay. We used surgical specimens of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma from 101 patients. In view of tumor heterogeneity, we randomly selected 10 high‐power fields per case, and triple‐positive CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + expression was identified using our scoring system. The distribution, histological characteristics, and prognostic importance of CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + cells were then analyzed. As a result, the distribution of CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + cells varied widely among the 101 cases examined, and CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + expression was correlated with poor glandular differentiation and high proliferation. Survival analysis showed that CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + expression was not correlated with patient outcome; however, CD 44 + / CD 24 + expression appeared to be correlated with poor prognosis. In conclusion, CD 44 + / CD 24 + / E p CAM + expression overlapped with poorly differentiated cells and possessed high proliferative potential in clinical pancreatic cancer. In particular, the presence of double‐positive CD 44 + / CD 24 + expression seemed to have clinical relevance, associating with poor prognosis.