Cutaneous horns (cornu cutaneum) are uncommon lesions consisting of keratotic material resembling that of an animal horn. Cutaneous horn may arise from a wide range of the epidermal lesions, which may be benign, premalignant or malignant. In this respective study, we describe our experience of eleven patients with cutaneous horn treated at our centre between January 2000 and January 2004. The clinical, pathological and treatment details were extracted from the case records. Data is presented as frequency distribution. There were 8 male and 3 female patients with a median age of 57 years. Most of the lesions were located on the ear, hand and scalp. Surgical resection was carried out in all the lesions. There were two cases of squamous cell carcinoma, and one case of basal cell carcinoma, other 8 cases were benign. None of the lesions recurred and no adjuvant treatment was given to any of the malignant lesions. Cutaneous horn is a clinical diagnosis that refers to a conical projection above the surface of the skin. The lesions typically occurs in sun exposed areas, particularly the face, ear, nose, forearms, and dorsum of hands. Even though our 60% of the cutaneous horns are benign possibility of skin cancer should always be kept in mind.

Background: Matrix metalloproteinases [MMPs], which degrade the extracellular matrix, play an important role in the invasion and metastasis of squamous cell carcinomas. One MMP, MMP-13, is thought to play a central role in MMP activation. The purpose of this study was to investigate MMP-13 and TIMP-1 expression in squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck and to relate these levels of expression to histologic patterns of invasion. Methods: This study included T1 lesions obtained via biopsy from the larynx, tongue, and skin/mucosa of 78 patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. The relationship between expression of MMP-13 and TIMP-1 and the mode of tumor invasion [MI] was evaluated immunohistochemically, using breast carcinoma tissue as a positive control. Results: Increased expression was observed in highly invasive tumors, as reflected by the significant correlation between the degree of staining for MMP-13 or TIMP-1 and MI grade [p < 0.05]. There was no significant relationship between the degree of staining for MMP-13 or TIMP-1 and patient age, sex, tumor site, or tumor histologic grade. In addition, levels of staining for MMP-13 did not correlate with levels of staining for TIMP-1. Conclusion: The expression of MMP-13 and TIMP-1 appears to play an important role in determining the invasive capacity of squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck. Whereas additional studies are needed to confirm these findings, evaluating expression of these MMPs in small biopsy samples may be useful in determining the invasive capacity of these tumors at an earlier stage.

Background: The purpose of our study was to investigate the immunohistochemical expression of TGF-β1 and p27 in pancreatic adenocarcinomas and to compare the findings with the clinicopathological features and survival. We also aimed to evaluate the expression of TGF-β1 and p27 in the context of other cell cycle and proliferation markers such as cyclin D1 and Ki-67. Methods: We examined TGF-β1 and p27 expression immunohistochemically in 63 cases of invasive ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas. Standard streptavidin-biotin immunperoxidase method was used for immunostaining and the stained slides were examined microscopically using semiquantitative criteria. Results: TGF-β1 stained the cytoplasms of the tumor cells in 43 cases [68.3%]. There was a statistically significant difference among TGF-β1 staining scores in terms of clinicopathologic factors such as blood vessel invasion, stage and distant metastasis [p < 0.05]. Of the 63 tumors evaluated 23 [36.5%] were positive for p27 within the nucleus. An inverse correlation was found between p27 immunoreactivity and grade [p < 0.05]. But no significant correlation was found between p27 and other parameters. Among the patients with survival data 27 patients had RO resections and these cases were considered in survival analysis. In the univariate analysis, neither TGF-β1 nor p27 expression was related with patient survival. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that in pancreatic carcinoma, TGF-β1 expression is related to tumor growth and metastasis. But it is not associated with cell cycle proteins. p27 expression is reduced in pancreatic adenocarcinomas and decreased protein levels of p27 may play a role in the differentiation of pancreatic cancer.

Background/Objectives: Endometrial cancer is a heterogeneous malignancy that displays distinct molecular features and clinical behaviors. The molecular profile of endometrial cancer and its relationship with menopausal status, histological subtype, tumor grade, mismatch repair (MMR)/microsatellite instability (MSI) status, co-mutation patterns, and TCGA molecular classification were investigated in the current study. Methods: A total of 81 histopathologically confirmed endometrial cancer cases were retrospectively evaluated. Molecular profiling was performed using a targeted 71-gene NGS panel together with MSI-PCR and mismatch repair (MMR) immunohistochemistry. Because the targeted panel was not designed to detect genome-wide copy-number alterations or comprehensive mutational signatures, molecular subgroup assignment was performed using a surrogate TCGA-inspired molecular classification approach based on POLE mutation status, microsatellite instability (MSI)/Mismatch Repair (MMR) findings, and TP53 alterations. Histological subtypes, tumor grades, menopausal status, and molecular alterations were compared. Results: Of the cases evaluated, 57 (70.4%) were endometrioid and 24 (29.6%) were serous carcinoma. TP53 variations were significantly higher in serous carcinomas compared to endometrioid tumors (66.7% vs. 26.3%; p = 0.001). In endometrioid carcinomas, the mean number of variants increased with advancing tumor grade (Grade 1: 4.44; Grade 2: 9.68; Grade 3: 11.42; p = 0.006). Alterations in BLM, CDC27, MLH3, and MSH3 were more frequently observed in high-grade tumors. In exploratory analyses, no significant differences were detected between the premenopausal and postmenopausal groups regarding total variant load, number of altered genes, MSI status, or the distribution of TCGA-inspired molecular subgroups; however, these comparisons were limited by the small number of premenopausal patients. The most frequent co-mutation was observed between BLM and CDC27 (55.6%). In the TCGA-inspired molecular classification, the most prevalent subgroup was NSMP-proxy (33.3%). Conclusions: Serous and endometrioid endometrial cancers display distinct molecular characteristics. In endometrioid carcinomas, the genomic alteration load increases in parallel with advancing tumor grade. TCGA-inspired molecular classification and co-mutation analyses revealed the prominent molecular heterogeneity of endometrial cancer. In exploratory analyses, no significant differences were detected between the premenopausal and postmenopausal groups regarding total variant load, number of altered genes, MSI status, or the distribution of TCGA-inspired molecular subgroups. However, these findings should be interpreted with caution because of the limited number of premenopausal patients. Given the limited number of premenopausal patients, findings related to menopausal status should be considered exploratory and require validation in larger, independent cohorts.