Immunohistochemical Study of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin α-subunit in Adenocarcinoma of the Stomach

Hiroyuki Hayashi, Kenji Omura, Yoshinori Munemoto, Shyunichi Watanabe, Kenji Doden, Takashi Iwa

First Department of Surgery, Kanazawa University, School of Medicine

To determine the clinicopathological significance of human chorionic gonadotropin α-subunit (HCG-α) in gastric adenocarcinoma, immunohistochemically 127 cases of gastric cancer were studied. HCG-α immunoreactive cancer cells were demonstrated in 10 (7.9%). There was no correlation between the appearance of HCG-α immunoreactivity and gross appearance, histological subtype, pathological stage or outcome. Furthermore HCG-α immunoreactive cells in the normal pyloric mucosa and gastric cancer were immunoreactive with chronogranin A, which is considered to be a useful marker of endocrine cells. Therefore, HCG-α cannot be regarded as a marker of malignancy in gastric adenocarcinoma. It should be regarded as one of the eutopic hormones expressed by endocrine differentiated gastric cancer cells.

Key words
adenocarcinoma of the stomach, HCG-α-subunit, chromogranin A

Reprint requests
Hiroyuki Hayashi First Department of Surgery, Kanazawa University, School of Medicine
13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa City, 920 JAPAN

Accepted
September 4, 1991

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