Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) immunoreactivity in ovarian serous and mucinous neoplasms: diagnostic and prognostic value

Li-Na Guo, Wilkinson N, Buckley CH, Fox H, Hale RJ, Chawner L. Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) immunoreactivity in ovarian serous and mucinous neoplasms: diagnostic and prognostic value. Int J Gynecol Cancer 1993; 3: 391–394. Sixty-two serous and mucinous ovarian tumors, an admixture of benign, borderline and malignant neoplasms, were immunostained for proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), with the monoclonal antibody PC10. The PC10 index, the proportion of cells showing nuclear positive staining, was calculated in each case. All the tumors showed positive immunoreactivity for PCNA. There was no overlap of PC10 counts between benign, borderline and malignant serous tumors but within the mucinous group of neoplasms there was considerable overlap between the counts for borderline and malignant tumors. There was no relationship between the PC10 index and the surgical stage of the malignant neoplasms and the index could not be correlated with patient death. Staining for PCNA does not, therefore, appear to be of any prognostic value in ovarian adenocarcinomas.