Behavioral Comparison of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma between Original and Metastatic Lymph Node Lesions

Immunohistochemical expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs) was investigated comparatively between the original and the metastatic lymph node lesions of the same tumor. Tissue samples of both the original and regional lymph node lesions were obtained from 11 patients who did not receive preoperative radiotherapy. The percentage of VEGF immunopositive area (PVIA) in the tumor was determined through computer image analysis. Proliferative activity of tumor cells was assessed in terms of the labeling index (LI) of PCNA. PCNA LI showed no correlation between the original and metastatic tumors, whereas the PVIA appeared to be similar between the original and regional lymph node lesions. These results suggest that immunohistochemical expression of VEGF in the original tumor shows the characteristic behavior of a metastatic tumor, thus providing therapeutic information.