Ki-67 proliferative index predicts progression-free survival of patients with well-differentiated ileal neuroendocrine tumors

Ki-67 proliferative index (Ki-67 index) is suggested to be an important prognostic variable and is included as one of the grading parameters for neuroendocrine tumors. The present study was undertaken to determine the usefulness of the Ki-67 index and the corresponding tumor grade in predicting progression-free survival (PFS) of patients with ileal well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumors (wNETs). Tumors from 57 patients with ileal wNETs were studied. Immunohistochemical staining for Ki-67 was performed on the primary as well as selected metastatic tumors and quantitated by computer-assisted image analysis using the Ariol system. The tumors were graded based on mitotic activity and Ki-67 index. Clinical and pathological variables affecting the PFS were analyzed. There were 29 women and 28 men, with a mean age of 59 years. At the time of initial presentation, 8 patients (14%) had localized disease (stages I and II), 29 patients (51%) had regional (nodal/mesenteric) spread (stage III), and 20 patients (35%) had distant metastasis (stage IV). Twelve patients experienced disease progression during subsequent follow-up. Patients with initial stage IV disease were more likely to experience disease progression (P = .005). Additionally, higher histological grade (as determined by Ki-67 index >2%) was associated with a decreased PFS (P = .001). Ki-67 index greater than 2% at either the primary site or the metastatic site was found to be the only significant predictor of PFS after consideration of all other variables in an adjusted analysis. In conclusion, the Ki-67 index predicts PFS of patients with ileal wNETs.     

Prognostic value of the proliferative index determined by Ki-67 immunostaining in superficial bladder tumors

The biological behavior of urothelial carcinomas remains unpredictable. The objective of this study was to determine the prognostic value of Ki-67 index in superficial papillary bladder tumors and to correlate it with the S-phase fraction (SPF) measured by flow cytometry. Three hundred nineteen patients with newly diagnosed superficial (pTa, pT1) bladder tumors were included between September 1990 and April 1992. Patients with bladder carcinoma in situ alone were excluded. We observed 255 pTa tumors and 64 pT1 tumors, whereas 111 lesions were classified as grade G1 and 208 as grade G2-G3. Ki-67 immunostaining was performed on paraffin-embedded material using a 3-step immunoperoxidase procedure with the murine monoclonal antibody MiB1. The relation between Ki-67 expression and prognostic variables (stage, grade, tumor size, multifocality, age, and sex) was investigated by the chi-square test. Cox regression was used to describe the association between Ki-67 and tumor recurrence in 308 patients with follow-up while adjusting for potentially confounding prognostic variables. The frequency of high Ki-67 expression (> or =10%) increased with stage (P = .005) and grade (P = .001), but not with tumor size or multifocality. Two hundred one patients experienced tumor recurrence in a median follow-up of 68 months. Stage, grade, tumor size, and multifocality were all independent predictors of recurrence. Ki-67 index greater than 10% was found to be an independent predictor of tumor recurrence among patients with tumors larger than 3 cm in diameter (HR = 2.05, CI = 1.18-3.55), but not those with smaller size tumors. With regards to the DNA index, a significant but weak correlation was observed between Ki-67 expression and the SPF (Spearman's correlation coefficient = 0.23, P = .004). In addition, aneuploid tumors had significantly higher expression of Ki-67 (22.5%) than diploid tumors (10.1%) (P = .0006). Moreover, patients with DNA aneuploid bladder tumors were more likely to have more than 10% Ki-67-positive cells than those with diploid tumors. In patients with newly diagnosed pTa or pT1 bladder tumors, a Ki-67 index above 10% is an independent predictor of shorter time to recurrence only in those with tumors larger than 3 cm.     

Automated assessment of Ki-67 proliferation index in neuroendocrine tumors by deep learning

The Ki-67 proliferation index (PI) is a prognostic factor in neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) and defines tumor grade. Analysis of Ki-67 PI requires calculation of Ki-67-positive and Ki-67-negative tumor cells, which is highly subjective. To overcome this, we developed a deep learning-based Ki-67 PI algorithm (KAI) that objectively calculates Ki-67 PI. Our study material consisted of NETs divided into training (n = 39), testing (n = 124), and validation (n = 60) series. All slides were digitized and processed in the Aiforia^® Create (Aiforia Technologies, Helsinki, Finland) platform. The ICC between the pathologists and the KAI was 0.89. In 46% of the tumors, the Ki-67 PIs calculated by the pathologists and the KAI were the same. In 12% of the tumors, the Ki-67 PI calculated by the KAI was 1% lower and in 42% of the tumors on average 3% higher. The DL-based Ki-67 PI algorithm yields results similar to human observers. While the algorithm cannot replace the pathologist, it can assist in the laborious Ki-67 PI assessment of NETs. In the future, this approach could be useful in, for example, multi-center clinical trials where objective estimation of Ki-67 PI is crucial.     

Role of Ki-67 proliferation index and p53 expression in predicting progression of pituitary adenomas

Pituitary adenomas sometimes progress after surgery and can be locally invasive. Ki-67 and p53 expression are referred to as indicators of aggressive behavior in the World Health Organization Classification of Endocrine Tumors. The real value of these markers including an appropriate threshold for Ki-67 labeling index correlating with tumor progression is controversial. We identified 24 consecutive pituitary adenomas from patients who required surgery for recurrence within 5 years of their first procedure and 31 consecutive adenomas with no evidence of postsurgical progression within 5 years of first surgery. Case selection was based upon availability of complete clinical information, blocks, and slides for study. Immunohistochemistry for Ki-67 revealed that the tumors without progression had a proliferation index of 0.41% +/- 0.01% (mean +/- SEM) (n = 31) (range, 0.08%-1.2%) and the first biopsy from those tumors which progressed had a mean proliferation index of 1.45% +/- 0.09% (mean +/- SEM) (n = 24) (range, 0.1%-10.6%) (P = .01). With the use of ROC analysis, a threshold level of Ki-67 expression greater than 1.3% predicts progression with a high specificity. The group with progression had a higher proportion of nonfunctioning tumors (P < .005, chi(2)). There was no significant difference between the 2 groups with regard to invasion, suprasellar extension, size, tumor type, postoperative radiotherapy, extent of resection, sex, and age. Ki-67 labeling index was an independent predictor of progression (multivariate analysis, P < .011). p53 was positive in 12.5% of cases with surgical progression and in 9.6% of cases without progression, but the difference was not significant (P = .7; chi(2), 0.11).     

Interobserver agreement of proliferation index (Ki-67) outperforms mitotic count in pulmonary carcinoids

Evaluation of proliferative activity is a cornerstone in the classification of endocrine tumors; in pulmonary carcinoids, the mitotic count delineates typical carcinoid (TC) from atypical carcinoid (AC). Data on the reproducibility of manual mitotic counting and other methods of proliferation index evaluation in this tumor entity are sparse. Nine experienced pulmonary pathologists evaluated 20 carcinoid tumors for mitotic count (hematoxylin and eosin) and Ki-67 index. In addition, Ki-67 index was automatically evaluated with a software-based algorithm. Results were compared with respect to correlation coefficients (CC) and kappa values for clinically relevant grouping algorithms. Evaluation of mitotic activity resulted in a low interobserver agreement with a median CC of 0.196 and a median kappa of 0.213 for the delineation of TC from AC. The median CC for hotspot (0.658) and overall (0.746) Ki-67 evaluation was considerably higher. However, kappa values for grouped comparisons of overall Ki-67 were only fair (median 0.323). The agreement of manual and automated Ki-67 evaluation was good (median CC 0.851, median kappa 0.805) and was further increased when more than one participant evaluated a given case. Ki-67 staining clearly outperforms mitotic count with respect to interobserver agreement in pulmonary carcinoids, with the latter having an unacceptable low performance status. Manual evaluation of Ki-67 is reliable, and consistency further increases with more than one evaluator per case. Although the prognostic value needs further validation, Ki-67 might perspectively be considered a helpful diagnostic parameter to optimize the separation of TC from AC.     

Usefulness of MIB1 monoclonal antibody in assessing the proliferative index in human bladder carcinoma: comparison with Ki-67 antibody

The reactivity of MIB1 antibody on routinely processed paraffin sections was compared with that of Ki-67 antibody on frozen sections of 80 transitional cell carcinomas of the bladder. The percentage of labelled cells was expressed as the labelling index. MIB1 labelling indices were higher than those of Ki-67 but for each case the two values were strongly correlated ( r = 0.91). Ki-67 and MIB1 indices were also correlated to tumour grade and stage (P 0.001). MIB1 indices determined after both formaldehyde and ethanol based Bouin's fluid fixatives did not show any significant difference. MIB1 antibody staining after microwave oven heating of tissue sections is a simple technique for assessing the proliferative fraction of bladder tumours on fixed material. The use of MIB1 antibody permits retrospective studies and should determine whether the proliferation index in bladder carcinoma has the same prognostic value as demonstrated in other types of neoplasms.     

胃肠道类癌中Ki-67、PCNA、Laminin的表达及意义

目的 研究胃肠道类癌Ki-67、PCNA、laminin(LN)的表达与侵袭性和增殖性的关系。方法 应用免疫组织化学S-P法检测36例胃肠道类癌组织中3种指标的表达。结果 36例胃肠道类癌组织中Ki～67、PCNA、LN阳性表达率分别为50．o％、55．5％、55．5％；随肿瘤分化程度降低、浸润深度加深、淋巴结的转移，各指标阳性表达率逐渐升高。结论 Ki-67、PC-NA可作为评估胃肠道类癌预后的指标。Ki-67比PCNA在评价胃肠道类癌增殖性方面更准确；PCNA免疫染色反应性较敏感，其类癌诊断的阳性标准应适当提高。LN的表达可预测胃肠道类癌组织的分化、浸润及转移能力。     

甲状腺肿瘤中survivin和Ki-67的表达

目的 探讨凋亡抑制蛋白survivin和Ki-67抗原在甲状腺肿瘤组织中的表达及其临床病理意义.方法 选择术后切除的甲状腺癌标本56例、甲状腺腺瘤13例、腺瘤旁正常甲状腺组织10例,采用SP法染色,观察survivin、Ki-67抗原的表达情况,结合临床病理资料进行统计学分析.结果 正常甲状腺组织、甲状腺腺瘤和甲状腺癌患者中survivin阳性表达依次为0、15.38%和60.71%;Ki-67阳性表达依次为0、23.08%和69.64%,甲状腺癌中survivin和Ki-67的表达明显高于正常甲状腺组织和甲状腺腺瘤(P<0.05).年龄>45岁组甲状腺癌survivin表达明显高于<45岁组(P<0.05);而Ki-67表达无年龄差异(P>0.05).survivin和Ki-67表达与甲状腺癌病理类型无关(P>0.05).TNM分期Ⅲ、Ⅳ期患者的survivin和Ki-67阳性表达明显高于Ⅰ、Ⅱ期患者(P<0.05).在有淋巴结转移的甲状腺癌中survivin和Ki-67阳性表达明显高于无淋巴结转移者(P<0.05).结论 survivin的高表达与甲状腺癌的发生、发展和转移有密切关系.survivin和Ki-67的表达情况对甲状腺癌的诊断和预后评估有一定临床意义.二者联合检测对甲状腺癌的早期诊断可能发挥重要作用.     

Activation of T cells in the blood of patients with acute malaria: proliferative activity as indicated by Ki-67 expression

The expression of the proliferation-associated nuclear antigen Ki-67 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells was studied in 30 patients with acute malarial illness and 11 healthy controls from Addis Ababa or Nazareth in Ethiopia. Seventeen patients had Plasmodium falciparum infections and 13 had Plasmodium vivax. Two-colour immunoenzymatic staining was developed in order to simultaneously detect the expression of the nuclear antigen Ki-67 and determine the surface phenotype of the cell. The median percentage of proliferating, Ki-67 positive lymphocytes was significantly higher in patients with acute P. falciparum (11.8%) and P. vivax (15.6%) illnesses compared to the controls (4.3%). The majority of Ki-67 positive cells were T cells (CD3+) while the relative increase of Ki-67 expressing cells was similar for both the CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell subsets. Our data show an increased number of activated cells driven to proliferation in the peripheral blood of patients during acute malaria illness.     

Correlation of two argyrophilic nucleolar organizer region counting methods with the Ki-67 labeling index in uterine smooth muscle cell tumors

The argyrophilic nucleolar organizer regions (AgNOR) are silver stained granules that are thought to correlate with cell proliferation activity. Two AgNOR counting methods: the mean AgNOR count (mAgNOR, the mean number of AgNOR granules in 100 cells) and the AgNOR proliferative index (pAgNOR, the percentage of cells exhibiting five or more AgNOR granules per nuclei) have been proposed. In this study, the two counting methods were applied to 58 cases of normal uterine corpus and uterine corpus tumors and were compared with the Ki-67 labeling index (Ki-67 LI) using MIB-1 monoclonal antibody and other histopathological criteria. Notable differences in the number of AgNOR and the Ki-67 LI were observed between benign and malignant smooth muscle tissue. Histopathologic features are well correlated to the proliferative activity of tumors. Although the most reliable method of predicting malignant potential cannot be determined, the methods outlined by this study are thought to be highly useful in assessing proliferative activities.     

乳腺导管内增生性病变中ER、Ki-67和cyclin D1的表达

目的 探讨ER、Ki-67和cyclin D1在乳腺导管内增生性病变中的表达及意义。方法 采用免疫组化和免疫荧光双标记法对56例乳腺导管内增生性病变进行ER、 Ki-67和cyclin D1染色标记。结果 正常乳腺组织中仅有散在的少数上皮细胞呈ER阳性表达。在普通型导管增生（usual ductal hyperplasia,UDH）中ER表达比正常乳腺组织增加,但ER阳性细胞呈不连续分布,阳性细胞间有较多的阴性细胞。非典型性导管增生（atypical ductal hyperplasia,ADH）和低级别原位导管癌（ductal carcinoma in situ,DCIS）中ER表达比UDH明显增加（P〈0．05）,ER阳性细胞呈连续的片状分布,阳性细胞间较少或没有ER阴性细胞。ADH和低级别DCIS中ER表达较高级DCIS显著（P〈0．01）。DCIS中Ki-67和cyclin D1表达高于UDH（P〈0．05）,并与UDH、ADH和DCIS的组织学分组呈正相关（r=0．352,P〈0．05和r=0．390,P〈0．05）。正常乳腺组织中上皮细胞内无ER和Ki-67同时表达。在UDH中有极少数上皮细胞ER和Ki-67同时表达,而在ADH和DCIS中ER和 Ki-67同时表达的细胞明显增加。结论 从正常乳腺组织到UDH、ADH、低级DCIS的恶性转化过程中伴有ER表达的逐渐增高。ER过度表达及ER和Ki-67在上皮细胞内同时表达可能是某些乳腺癌发生过程中的早期事件。     

Prognostic comparative study of S-phase fraction and Ki-67 index in breast carcinoma

AIMS: To investigate the prognostic value of recently proposed flow cytometric S-phase fraction (SPF) variables (average SPF and SPF tertiles) compared with conventional SPF, and to compare the one with the best predictive value with the immunohistochemical Ki-67 index in breast carcinoma. METHODS: A short term follow up study (median, 39.6 months) of a large series of patients (n = 306) was conducted. DNA ploidy was analysed on fresh/frozen tumour samples by flow cytometry, and the SPF was calculated from the DNA histogram using an algorithm. The Ki-67 index was assessed on paraffin wax embedded material by immunohistochemistry (cut off point, 10%). The two methods were compared by means of kappa statistics, and the prognostic significance of both in relation to disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was determined. RESULTS: SPF and Ki-67 analysis was performed on 234 (76.5%) and 295 (96.4%) tumours, respectively. The two assessments were simultaneously available in 230 cases. All SPF variables analysed in the whole series significantly correlated with disease evolution, with the conventional median SPF (cut off point, 6.1%) showing the highest predictive value in relation to both DFS (p = 0.0001) and OS (p = 0.0003). SPF tertiles and median SPF evaluated according to DNA ploidy status had no prognostic significance. The Ki-67 index showed a trend in relation to DFS (p = 0.086) that did not reach significance, and no correlation with OS was found (p = 0.264). The comparative analysis of SPF and Ki-67 revealed some agreement between the two methods (agreement, 69.13%; kappa statistic, 0.3844; p < 0.001), especially in the subgroup of diploid tumours. CONCLUSIONS: Flow cytometric SPF is a better prognosticator than the Ki-67 index, but only SPF variables applied in the whole series show potential clinical usefulness.     

胃肠道间质瘤中Ki-67、VEGF的表达及其意义

目的探讨Ki-67及肿瘤转移密切相关的血管内皮细胞生长因子(VEGF)与胃肠道间质瘤(gastrointestinal stromaltumors,GIST)生物学行为分级的关系。方法选取70例GIST蜡块构建组织芯片,采用免疫组化法联合检测Ki-67及VEGF,并结合病理形态学及生物学行为分级进行分析。结果①Ki-67阳性17例(阳性率24·3%),其中,极低度侵袭危险性(VLR)0/6例,低度侵袭(LR)危险性1/16例,中度侵袭危险性(IR)3/21例,高度侵袭危险性(HR)13/27例,HR组Ki-67表达与IR、LR及VLR组之间差异有显著性(χ2=13·61,P<0·01);生物学行为分级与Ki-67表达呈正相关(r=0·435,P<0·01)。②VEGF阳性45例(阳性率64·3%),其中,VLR组(0/6例)的阳性表达率低于HR(22/27例)、LR(10/16例)及IR组(13/21例)(χ2=8·34,P<0·01)。梭形细胞型、混合细胞型和上皮样细胞型GIST的VEGF阳性率分别为51·2%(21/41)、82·4%(14/17)及83·3%(10/12),上皮样细胞型和混合细胞型的VEGF表达较梭形细胞型差异有显著性(χ2=7·40,P<0·01);VEGF的表达不但与生物学行为分级呈正相关(r=0·332,P<0·05),而且与病理形态学分型呈正相关(r=0·263,P<0·05)。结论Ki-67和VEGF的表达与GIST生物学行为关系密切,可作为GIST生物学行为的潜在评价指标。     

P53和Ki-67在喉鳞状细胞癌中的表达及与短期预后的关系

目的:探讨P53和Ki-67在喉鳞状细胞癌(laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma,LSCC)中的表达情况及临床病理参数和短期预后相关分析.方法:选择手术切除LSCC标本35例,肿瘤分期均为T3~4N0M0.采用SP法染色进行P53和Ki-67免疫组织化学标记,结合临床病理参数和2年随访结果及无病生存情况进行统计学分析.结果:LSCC标本P53阳性率为60.00%;2年复发率P53阳性患者76.19%高于P53阴性28.59%,差异具有统计学意义(P=0.013).年龄大小、是否抽烟、增殖指数高低及肿瘤不同分级方面,患者2年内复发率差异均无统计学意义.T3~4N0M0分期患者的短期预后与P53表达高低相关.结论:P53的过表达对晚期LSCC短期预后评估具有一定的临床意义,可考虑作为晚期LSCC分层治疗指标.     

Thymidine labeling index and Ki-67 growth fraction in lesions of the breast.

Thymidine labeling index (TLI) and Ki-67 growth fraction (KGF) are two indicators of proliferative activity in breast cancer. The authors examined the relationship between TLI and KGF in 36 breast lesions (28 invasive ductal carcinomas and 8 benign lesions). TLI and KGF values were determined in separately labeled tissue sections as well as in frozen tissue sections labeled with both Ki-67 and tritiated thymidine. In separately labeled sections of carcinoma mean TLI was 6.8 while mean KGF was 16.0. For double-labeled sections of carcinoma mean TLI and KGF values were 6.1 and 16.4, respectively. Strong correlation between TLI and KGF of malignant tumors was found by both methods: r = 0.90 (P less than 0.001) for separately labeled sections, and r = 0.96 (P less than 0.001) for double-labeled sections. In double-labeled sections of benign lesions strong correlation between TLI and KGF also was observed (r = 0.94, P less than 0.001); however, in separately labeled benign breast tissue there was no significant correlation between TLI and KGF (r = 0.38). This may have been the result of variable sampling of small proliferative foci in separate sections of benign breast tissue. The strong correlation between TLI and KGF in breast carcinoma suggests that KGF may have prognostic implications similar to those of the TLI.     

Analysis of the Ki-67 index in the vaginal epithelium of castrated rats treated with tamoxifen

OBJECTIVES:Vaginal atrophy and breast cancer are common conditions in postmenopausal women and tamoxifen is the standard endocrine treatment for hormone-sensitive tumors. The present study aimed to assess the effect of tamoxifen on Ki-67 protein expression in the vaginal epithelium of castrated rats.RESULTS:The mean index of Ki-67 expression in the rat vagina of groups I and II was 4.04±0.96 and 26.86±2.19, respectively (p<0.001).CONCLUSIONS:According to the results of the present study, tamoxifen, at the dose and treatment length used, induced a significant increase in the cell proliferation of the vaginal mucosa in castrated rats, as evaluated by Ki-67 protein expression.     

Immunohistochemical detection of laminin-1 and Ki-67 in radicular cysts and keratocystic odontogenic tumors

Background  

Odontogenic cysts are those which arise from the epithelium associated with the development of teeth. Some odontogenic cysts were found to have special biological features that make them distinct from other lesions. This study was conducted to detect the immunoepxression of laminin-1 and Ki-67 in both radicular cysts (RCs) and keratocystic odontogenic tumors (KCOTs) and to examine the possible predictive value of these markers.     

Evaluation of apoptosis along with BCL-2 and Ki-67 expression in patients with intestinal metaplasia

The primary aim is to compare individuals with intestinal metaplasia (IM), chronic active gastritis (CAG), and normal gastric mucosa (NGM) in terms of apoptosis, proliferation, and Bcl-2 expression. The secondary aim is to determine whether these parameters are different between patients with and without gastric cancer in first-degree relatives. We enrolled 106 patients whose histopathological results were consistent with IM (n: 42), CAG (n: 51), or NGM (n: 13). Antral biopsies were immunohistochemically stained for Bcl-2 and Ki-67 expression. Apoptosis was detected using TUNEL assay. While no significant difference was determined between three groups with regard to apoptosis and Bcl-2 expression (p>0.05), Ki-67 expression was significantly higher in the IM group when compared with the CAG and NGM groups (29.90±22.87 vs. 18.18±16.22 vs. 18.54±20, respectively; p=0.012). Helicobacter pylori was determined to increase apoptosis (49.3% vs. 25.7%, p<0.05), nevertheless, it had no significant effect on proliferation and Bcl-2 expression. Bcl-2 and Ki-67 expression and apoptosis were not different among patients with and without a history of gastric cancer in first degree relatives. Although intestinal metaplasia cases demonstrate an increase in proliferation, no elevation is observed in apoptosis. This can be an important factor in the progression to gastric cancer.