Tenascin-C and fibronectin expression divide early stage tongue cancer into low- and high-risk groups

Abstract

Background:Oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma (OTSCC) metastasises early, especially to regional lymph nodes. There is an ongoing debate on which early stage (T1-T2N0) patients should be treated with elective neck dissection. We need prognosticators for early stage tongue cancer.Methods:Mice immunisation with human mesenchymal stromal cells resulted in production of antibodies against tenascin-C (TNC) and fibronectin (FN), which were used to stain 178 (98 early stage), oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma samples. Tenascin-C and FN expression in the stroma (negative, moderate or abundant) and tumour cells (negative or positive) were assessed. Similar staining was obtained using corresponding commercial antibodies.Results:Expression of TNC and FN in the stroma, but not in the tumour cells, proved to be excellent prognosticators both in all stages and in early stage cases. Among early stages, when stromal TNC was negative, the 5-year survival rate was 88%. Correspondingly, when FN was negative, no cancer deaths were observed. Five-year survival rates for abundant expression of TNC and FN were 43% and 25%, respectively.Conclusions:Stromal TNC and, especially, FN expressions differentiate patients into low- and high-risk groups. Surgery alone of early stage primary tumours might be adequate when stromal FN is negative. Aggressive treatments should be considered when both TNC and FN are abundant.

Prognostic value of the immunohistochemical detection of cancer‐associated fibroblasts in oral cancer: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…They were conducted in 8 different countries: Brazil, Japan, Israel, China, Finland, England, Croatia, and Norway . In addition, 2 studies were performed in collaboration, 1 between Finland and Israel and 1 between Brazil and Finland . The selected articles were observational studies.…”

“…Based on the MAStARI assessment, 3 articles were classified as carrying a high risk of bias, mainly because the answers for questions 3 and 4 (related to confounding factors and outcomes, respectively) were “no”. Sixteen studies were classified as with moderate risk for bias and 1 study was classified as low risk of bias (Table ).…”

Combining discovery and targeted proteomics reveals a prognostic signature in oral cancer

“…However, the preparation of tissue samples for LC-MS/MS analysis can be challenging as a result of their morphological and molecular complexity 7,12,28 .…”

Prognostic impact of tumour–stroma ratio in early‐stage oral tongue cancers

“…In OTSCC, CAFs identified by the use of α‐smooth muscle actin have been reported as key players in tumour progression, and they serve as an important prognostic marker in oral cancers, including all stages of OTSCC . In addition, stromal compounds, such as activin A, tenascin‐C, and fibronectin, have shown prognostic power in OTSCC . However, the use of immunohistochemistry for such biomarkers increases costs, and the staining results may be, depending on the antibody used and the ligand expression level, difficult to analyse objectively.…”

“…36,37 In addition, stromal compounds, such as activin A, tenascin-C, and fibronectin, have shown prognostic power in OTSCC. 38,39 However, the use of immunohistochemistry for such biomarkers increases costs, and the staining results may be, depending on the antibody used and the ligand expression level, difficult to analyse objectively. The benefit of TSR is that it can be evaluated from routine HE-stained slides.…”