Correlation of E- Cadherin and Cyclin D1 expression with histomorphological features in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A cross- sectional study

Background: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most common oral malignancy, representing up to 80–90% of all malignant neoplasms of the oral cavity. E-Cadherin as a tumour suppressor gene sets a threshold for Wnt/β-catenin signalling. When expression of E- Cadherin is lost, potentiation of Wnt signalling pathway occurs leading to loss of cell–cell adhesion. Cyclin D1 plays a major role in cell cycle transition from G1 to S phase by contributing to inactivation of the retinoblastoma gene product, and overexpression of CCND1 has been reported in 35–40% cases of OSCC. The aim of study was to correlate the E- cadherin and Cyclin D1 expression with various histomorphological features in oral squamous cell carcinoma. Objectives: To evaluate and correlate the expression of E-Cadherin and Cyclin D1 immunohistochemical markers expression with histomorphological features in Oral Squamous cell carcinoma. Methodology: A retrospective study was carried out on 40 diagnosed cases of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma comprising of 14 cases of well differentiated OSCC, 16 cases of moderately differentiated OSCC and 10 cases of poorly differentiated OSCC. Results: There was downregulation of E-Cadherin and overexpression of Cyclin D1 in increasing grades of OSCC and the difference was statistically significant. E-Cadherin was localised to membranous and shifted to cytoplasm as the grade worsened. Cyclin D1 was localised to nuclei of cells and the expression was seen more at the peripheral portions of tumour islands depicting the proliferative activity of tumour front. Lymphovascular invasion was also statistically significant with E- Cadherin IHC expression. Conclusion: The study revealed a good prognostic role of both E-Cadherin and Cyclin D1 in OSCC. The markers can be used for prognostic as well as therapeutic purposes.