Telomerase activity correlates with histo-pathological factors in uterine endometrial carcinoma

Telomerase activity has been implicated in the progression of various human tumors. Our aim was to evaluate telomerase activity and to compare it with histo-pathological factors in uterine endometrial carcinoma, to look for possible correlations. Telomerase activity was measured by dilution analysis using a PCR-based telomeric repeat amplification method and detected in 31 of 35 primary endometrial carcinoma tumor specimens. High telomerase activity, detected after 100-fold dilution of extracts, was identified in 15 specimens. There was no significant correlation between the positive telomerase activity and tumor surgical stage or histo-pathological factors. However, high telomerase activity was significantly correlated with advanced surgical stage and with pelvic lymph node metastasis. Our findings suggest that an increase in telomerase activity may be associated with tumor progression and that its level may have a prognostic value in endometrial carcinoma.