Abstract
BACKGROUND: In oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN) expression has been noted in the cell membrane throughout the epithelium of the lesion, suggesting its increased expression. OBJECTIVES: The present study was conducted to evaluate and compare the expression of EMMPRIN in the normal oral mucosa (NOM), different histological grades of oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) and OSCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 100 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue blocks of NOM (n = 10), 20 cases each of mild, moderate and severe (OED) (n = 60), and 10 cases each of well differentiated, moderately differentiated and poorly differentiated carcinomas (n = 30) were included in the study. The tissues sections were immunohistochemically stained and were evaluated for intensity and area of expression in different groups. RESULTS: Out of 60 cases of OED, 29 (48%) cases showed intense dark brown staining in the epithelium. The stroma in 38 (63%) cases showed positive immunoexpression. The expression of EMMPRIN in OSCC revealed intense dark brown staining in 9 (90%) cases of well differentiated, and a decent thereon in 8 (80%) cases of moderately differentiated and 4 (40%) cases of poorly differentiated carcinomas. CONCLUSION: The role of EMMPRIN in precarcinogenesis and early carcinogenesis needs to be studied on considerable sample size. This can enable oncologists to detect cancer at an early stage before it progresses to malignancy.