Prognostic significance of the PC10 index as a prospective assay for cervical cancer treated with radiation therapy alone

Abstract

The monoclonal antibody PC10 recognizes proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in conventionally fixed and processed histologic materials. Formaldehyde‐fixed and paraffin‐embedded specimens taken from 194 patients with Stage III squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix treated with radiation therapy alone were investigated for PCZO positivity using immunohistochemical methods. A few squamous epithelial cells in the basal layer and the deepest zone of the prickle cell layer were positive for PO. Cancer cells also were positive for PC10, showing a diffuse or granular nuclear staining pattern. The multiple logistic regression model analysis and the Kaplan‐Meier method indicate that a strong correlation exists between the PC10 index and prognosis (P < 0.001). Thus, the PC10 index may be a predictive indicator for the prognosis of patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix treated with radiation therapy alone. Copyright © 1992 American Cancer Society