Influence of VEGF-C and lymphatic vessel density on regional metastasis and prognosis of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract

The metastatic dissemination of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) to neck lymph nodes occurs rather through the lymphatic system. Furthermore, it has long been established that the presence of lymph node metastasis (N+), verified through histopathological analysis, is the most important prognostic factor to the patients with SCC. Recent studies reported that the vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C) may directly induce lymphangiogenesis and dilatation of lymphatic vessels in solid tumors of different sites. However, the VEGF-C as a prognostic factor to the oral squamous cell carcinoma has not been frequently studied. The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of VEGF-C and the lymphatic microvessel density on regional metastasis and the prognosis of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma. A total of 117 cases of surgically excised primary oral squamous cell carcinoma with clinical stages I and II (located in tongue and floor of the mouth) from the files of Head and Neck Surgery and Otohinolaryngology Department of the A. C. Camargo Cancer Hospital, São Paulo, Brazil, will be analysed. Clinical information regarding the gender, age, race, tobacco and alcohol abuse, localization, stage by the TNM-UICC, treatment, lymph nodes involvement, local and cervical recurrences, distant metastasis and second primary tumors will be obtained from the patients files. In addition, the immunohistochemical study will be performed on paraffin sections of SCC with policlonal VEGF-C and monoclonal podoplanin (specific for lymphatic vessel) using a standard streptavidin-biotin-peroxidase technique... (AU)