Objective: To study the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C) in laryngeal squamous carcinoma (LSC) and its relationship to lymph node metastasis.
Methods: Paraffin-embedded specimens of primary laryngeal carcinomas from 60 patients subjected to operation were studied. VEGF-C expression was investigated using immunohistochemical staining.
Results: Positive immunohistochemical staining for VEGF-C protein was observed in some laryngeal squamous carcinoma cells (45/60), the VEGF-C antigen was identified in the cytoplasm of cancer cells. Furthermore, the expression of VEGF-C in laryngeal squamous carcinoma cells was significantly higher in lymph-node-positive groups than in node-negative groups, and the expression was significantly higher in poorly differentiated LSC tissues than in moderately and well differentiated LSC tissues.
Conclusion: The above findings indicate a close correlation between VEGF-C expression and lymph node metastasis in laryngeal squamous carcinoma.