Departments of Pathology, The Sol Goldman Pancreatic Cancer Research Center, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA.
Am J Surg Pathol. 2012 Feb;36(2):173-84. doi: 10.1097/PAS.0b013e3182417d36.
Poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinomas (NECs) of the pancreas are rare malignant neoplasms with a poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to determine the clinicopathologic and genetic features of poorly differentiated NECs and compare them with other types of pancreatic neoplasms. We investigated alterations of KRAS, CDKN2A/p16, TP53, SMAD4/DPC4, DAXX, ATRX, PTEN, Bcl2, and RB1 by immunohistochemistry and/or targeted exomic sequencing in surgically resected specimens of 9 small cell NECs, 10 large cell NECs, and 11 well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumors (PanNETs) of the pancreas. Abnormal immunolabeling patterns of p53 and Rb were frequent (p53, 18 of 19, 95%; Rb, 14 of 19, 74%) in both small cell and large cell NECs, whereas Smad4/Dpc4, DAXX, and ATRX labeling was intact in virtually all of these same carcinomas. Abnormal immunolabeling of p53 and Rb proteins correlated with intragenic mutations in the TP53 and RB1 genes. In contrast, DAXX and ATRX labeling was lost in 45% of PanNETs, whereas p53 and Rb immunolabeling was intact in these same cases. Overexpression of Bcl-2 protein was observed in all 9 small cell NECs (100%) and in 5 of 10 (50%) large cell NECs compared with only 2 of 11 (18%) PanNETs. Bcl-2 overexpression was significantly correlated with higher mitotic rate and Ki67 labeling index in neoplasms in which it was present. Small cell NECs are genetically similar to large cell NECs, and these genetic changes are distinct from those reported in PanNETs. The finding of Bcl-2 overexpression in poorly differentiated NECs, particularly small cell NEC, suggests that Bcl-2 antagonists/inhibitors may be a viable treatment option for these patients.
胰腺低分化神经内分泌癌(NEC)是一种罕见的恶性肿瘤,预后较差。本研究旨在确定低分化 NEC 的临床病理和遗传学特征,并将其与其他胰腺肿瘤进行比较。我们通过免疫组织化学和/或靶向外显子组测序,研究了 9 例小细胞 NEC、10 例大细胞 NEC 和 11 例胰腺神经内分泌肿瘤(PanNET)手术切除标本中 KRAS、CDKN2A/p16、TP53、SMAD4/DPC4、DAXX、ATRX、PTEN、Bcl2 和 RB1 的改变。p53 和 Rb 的异常免疫标记模式在小细胞和大细胞 NEC 中均很常见(p53,19 例中有 18 例,95%;Rb,19 例中有 14 例,74%),而 Smad4/Dpc4、DAXX 和 ATRX 标记在几乎所有这些相同的癌中都是完整的。p53 和 Rb 蛋白的异常免疫标记与 TP53 和 RB1 基因的种内突变相关。相比之下,45%的 PanNET 丢失了 DAXX 和 ATRX 标记,而这些病例的 p53 和 Rb 免疫标记是完整的。所有 9 例小细胞 NEC(100%)和 10 例大细胞 NEC(50%)中均观察到 Bcl-2 蛋白过表达,而 11 例 PanNET 中仅 2 例(18%)存在。Bcl-2 过表达与存在该过表达的肿瘤中更高的有丝分裂率和 Ki67 标记指数显著相关。小细胞 NEC 在遗传学上与大细胞 NEC 相似,这些遗传变化与 PanNET 中报道的不同。在低分化 NEC 中发现 Bcl-2 过表达,特别是小细胞 NEC,表明 Bcl-2 拮抗剂/抑制剂可能是这些患者的可行治疗选择。