Acs et al evaluated expression of E-cadherin in breast cancers. This can help distinguish a lobular from a ductal carcinoma. The authors are from the University of Pennsylvania and University of Washington (Seattle).
Method: immunostain for E-cadherin in a breast carcinoma
Staining in Tumor Cells
Points
absent or incomplete membrane staining
0
complete membrane staining, weak
1
complete membrane staining, moderate
2
complete membrane staining, strong
3
where:
• Strong staining can be observed with a 10x objective and moderate staining with a 20x objective.
total score =
= (percent of cells staining weakly) + (2 * (percent of cells staining moderately)) + (3 * (percent of cells staining strongly))
Interpretation:
• minimum score: 0
• maximum score: 300
• Typically an invasive lobular carcinoma or a lobular carcinoma in situ will have a very low score.
• Typically an invasive ductal carcinoma or a ductal carcinoma in situ will have a high score.
• Some lobular carcinomas may show some staining but this is usually limited.
• Some breast cancers show both lobular and ductal patterns, which is reflected in the E-cadherin pattern (foci of good staining and foci with poor staining).
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