International Journal of Contemporary Research in Multidisciplinary

Abstract:

Introduction: The contribution of immunohistochemistry (IHC) to undifferentiated carcinoma of the nasopharynx (UCNT) has been the subject of several studies. The purpose of this work is to demonstrate its interest apart from the positive diagnosis.

Methods: The retrospective study collected UCNT diagnosed by standard histology on biopsy samples (cavum or lymph node), which, once fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin, allowed immunohistochemically analysis using specific antibodies for the following markers: VEGF, EGFR, LMP1, Bcl2, Ki67, C-kit, and P53.

Results: The expression levels of the markers were variable. A significant relationship between some markers and the young age of the patients, the viral load of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), and the presence of metastases was noted, while others were predictive of the therapeutic response and had an impact on the prognosis.

Discussion: The mechanisms involved in the appearance of UCNT, its diagnosis, or its treatment still raise many questions. The markers used in IHC have several interests apart from those allowing for a positive diagnosis. The EBV-UCNT relationship is well known due to the hypoexpression of some markers, especially in young subjects. In our study, they were correlated with other markers at an advanced stage of the disease in its lymph node or distant metastatic form and were indicators of relapse and a poor prognosis. In some cases, the hypoexpression of the markers was a harbinger of resistance to treatment. Our results overlapped with data from the literature.

Conclusion: IHC is a very useful step in pathological anatomy. It makes it possible to establish the positive diagnosis emphasized by the clinic. The IHC markers of UCNT have made it possible to highlight the link with EBV as well as prognostic and predictive elements of response to therapy.     

Keywords:

EBV, IHC, Metastases, Prognosis, UCNT

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Methods