Department of Pathology, Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Via Elio Chianesi 53, 00144 Rome, Italy.
Thorac Surg Clin. 2011 Feb;21(1):33-46, vi. doi: 10.1016/j.thorsurg.2010.08.014.
Due to their heterogeneity and infrequency, thymic epithelial cell tumors (TET) represent a diagnostic as well as a therapeutic problem. In the early stage of disease TET are usually cured by performing radical resections, whereas in advanced stages of disease they are usually radically unresectable from the beginning, and often show multiple relapses and/or intra- or extrathoracic metastases. Trained pathologists are required in TET diagnostics; awareness of the complexity of the mediastinum and of the differential diagnostic possibilities is mandatory. Immunohistochemical (IHC) studies play a fundamental role in oncologic surgical pathology. Among the many uses of IHC in cancer research, studies on a possible association between biomarker expression and treatment outcomes dominate the clinical translational research applications. This article reports on and discusses the role of IHC in diagnostic and translational research of TET.
胸腺上皮细胞肿瘤（TET）因其异质性和罕见性，既是诊断问题，也是治疗问题。在疾病的早期阶段，通过进行根治性切除术通常可以治愈 TET，而在疾病的晚期阶段，TET 通常从一开始就无法进行根治性切除，并且经常表现出多次复发和/或胸内或胸外转移。TET 的诊断需要经过培训的病理学家；必须意识到纵隔的复杂性和鉴别诊断的可能性。免疫组织化学（IHC）研究在肿瘤外科病理学中起着至关重要的作用。在 IHC 在癌症研究中的众多用途中，关于生物标志物表达与治疗结果之间可能存在关联的研究主导着临床转化研究应用。本文报告并讨论了 IHC 在 TET 的诊断和转化研究中的作用。
