Korean J Med.
2012 Jan;82(1):60-66.
Clinical and Histopathological Study of Pheochromocytoma Arising in the Adrenal Gland
- Affiliations
-
- 1Department of Pathology, Chungnam National University School of Medicine and Cancer Research Institute, Daejeon, Korea.
- 2Department of Internal Medicine, Graduate School of Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea. Hyum719@naver.com
Abstract
- BACKGROUND/AIMS
The diagnosis and prognosis of malignant pheochromocytoma are important. Other than distant metastasis, the pathology is insufficient to diagnose malignant versus benign pheochromocytoma.
METHODS
We analyzed 33 pheochromocytoma cases using the histological grade on the Thompson and Kimura scales. We compared the Thompson and Kimura scores with the degree of immunohistochemical staining for Ki-67 and heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90).
RESULTS
The most frequent symptom was hypertension (17 cases; 51.5%) and four patients had accompanying tumors: one case each of multiple endocrine neoplasm, papillary carcinoma of the thyroid, gastric adenocarcinoma, and neurofibroma. The mean Thompson score was 3.67 in benign pheochromocytoma and 10 in malignant pheochromocytoma, and the Kimura score was 2.17 and 5, respectively. The average immunohistochemical staining for Ki-67 was 5.77 and 10.44 in benign and malignant pheochromocytoma, respectively, while Hsp90 immunohistochemical staining was positive only in the cytoplasm of malignant pheochromocytoma.
CONCLUSIONS
Immunohistochemical staining for Ki-67 and Hsp90 was seen in malignant pheochromocytoma. The Thompson and Kimura scales and immunohistochemical results could help to differentiate benign and malignant pheochromocytoma.
