Significance of CK19 expression in detecting lymph node micrometastases in patients with laryngeal carcinoma

AIM: To evaluate the significance of cytokeratin19 (CK19) expression in diagnosing micrometastases in lymph nodes in patients with laryngeal carcinoma. METHODS: Forty cases of laryngeal carcinoma together with 163 lymph nodes were studied by the staining with hematoxylin and eosin(HE)and immunostaining with antibody against cytokeratin 19 (CK19) on histological sections of the primary tumor and regional lymph nodes. RESULTS: In all cases, CK19 was positively expressed in the primary tumor. Among 163 lymph nodes, metastases were confirmed by HE in 23 lymph nodes, and in 42 lymph nodes staining with immunohistochemistry, micrometastases were found in 19 lymph nodes. Micrometastases in the lymphonodes were significantly related to the T staging. CONCLUSION: Immunohistochemical staining is a valuable method for the detection of node micrometastases in patients with laryngeal carcinoma.