DECREASED E-CADHERIN EXPRESSION IN ENDOMETRIAL CARCINOMA IS ASSOCIATED WITH TUMOR DEDIFFERENTIATION AND DEEP MYOMETRIAL INVASION

Decreased E-cadherin expression in tumor cells has been suggested to p romote tumor invasiveness. We examined E-cadherin expression in 30 cas es of endometrial carcinoma by immunohistochemistry using a monoclonal antibody to E-cadherin and investigated its correlation with other hi stopathologic features of the tumor. We observed that: (1) E-cadherin expression decreased with toss of differentiation (P < 0.05); (2) E-ca dherin expression was inversely correlated with depth of myometrial in vasion (P < 0.05); (3) decreased E-cadherin expression was correlated with paraaortic node metastasis (P < 0.01); and (4) multivariate analy sis comparing the depth of myometrial invasion to the pattern of E-cad herin expression, histologic grade, nuclear grade, and lymph-vascular space invasion showed that the depth of myometrial invasion was most s trongly correlated with decreased E-cadherin expression (P < 0.005). T hese findings seem to be consistent with the concept that the dissocia tion of cancer cells due to decreased expression of E-cadherin facilit ates invasion of tumor celts. (C) 1994 Academic Press, Inc.