Correlation of prostate‐specific acid phosphatase and prostate‐specific antigen immunocytochemistry with survival in prostate carcinoma

Prostate‐specific acid phosphatase, a secretory product of prostatic cells, may be a secondary product of the interaction of hormones with their receptor proteins. In this study we have examined two independent patient populations to see whether the intensity or extent of prostate‐specific acid phosphatase and/or prostate‐specific antigen staining correlated with survival and hormonal manipulation. One population of 24 patients was selected from patients undergoing surgical resection for adenocarcinoma Stage B or C at the Mayo Clinic. The second population of 123 patients was obtained from Radiation Therapy Oncology Group Protocols 75‐06 and 77‐06. Tissue from both populations was analyzed. In both populations, the intensity of prostate‐specific acid phosphatase staining correlated with survival in a statistically significant manner. Staining with prostate‐specific antigen was present in greater than 90% of specimens; data was therefore not analyzed. In those patients who subsequently relapsed and were subjected to hormonal manipulation, there appeared to be a higher likelihood of response to hormones with intense prostate‐specific acid phosphatase staining.