Application of Ki-67 Immunofluorescence in Tumors

A tumor is an abnormal mass of tissue resulting from uncontrolled cell division, and their ability to continue to proliferate is the key to determining their biological behavior and prognosis. Therefore, assessing cell proliferation status is of great significance in tumor research and clinical diagnosis. Ki-67, a nuclear protein closely related to cell proliferation, is expressed in the G1, S, G2, and M phases of the cell cycle, but is absent in the quiescent G0 phase. This characteristic makes it an ideal molecular marker reflecting cell proliferation activity. Immunofluorescence (IF) is a commonly used method for detecting and localizing Ki-67. In this study, we performed Ki-67 IF on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and paracancerous tissues to assess proliferation capacity. The results showed that the proportion of Ki-67-positive cells in HCC tissues was significantly higher than that in paracancerous tissues, and most of them were located in the cell nuclei; only a few cell nuclei in paracancerous tissues were weakly positive. Then we explored the feasibility of applying Ki-67 IF in oncology research and discussed limitations in advancing cancer research.