Abstract
Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a common malignancy with a poor prognosis, highlighting the need for reliable molecular biomarkers. CD44s, a cell adhesion molecule, has been implicated in tumor progression, but its prognostic role in OSCC is unclear. This retrospective study evaluated CD44s expression in 50 OSCC cases using immunohistochemistry and an immunoreactive scoring system. High CD44s expression significantly correlated with advanced stage, lymph node metastasis and poor histological grade. CD44s overexpression may serve as a prognostic biomarker to identify high-risk OSCC patients requiring aggressive therapy.