Prognostic value of Ki-67, CD31 and epidermal growth factor receptor expression in basal cell carcinoma

Recurrence of basal cell carcinoma following treatment is common, and the majority of recurrences appear in the first 3 years. We examined the original tumors of 26 basal cell carcinoma cases, 14 of whom had a recurrence after an average of 3.7 years, and 12 of whom had no recurrence during an average of 4.4 years follow-up. Using immunohistochemistry, we tested for Ki-67, CD31 and epidermal growth factor receptor expressions in the tumor tissue. The percentages of expression for Ki-67, CD31 and epidermal growth factor receptor were significantly higher in the recurrent tumors than in the non-recurrent ones. Expression of Ki-67 and CD31 was 271.57 +/- 17.91 and 58.1 +/- 9.37 for the recurrent group and 187.08 +/- 21.48 and 23.9 +/- 5.45 for non-recurrent group respectively (p<0.0001; p<0.0001). Expression of epidermal growth factor receptor was positive in all basal cell carcinoma cells. The staining intensity was strong in 57% of recurrent and 8.3% of non-recurrent tumors (p=0.014). These results show that Ki-67, CD31 and epidermal growth factor receptor expression differ between basal cell carcinomas which later recur and those that do not recur.