[Immunohistological coexpression of keratin and vimentin in the epithelial neoplastic cells]

Filed formalin-fixed paraffin blocks of 128 cases of epithelial neoplasms were selected for immunohistochemical study of keratin and vimentin expression. The results showed that 35.1% (45/128) of different carcinomas expressed vimentin. The immuno-positivity of vimentin in thyroid carcinomas, ovarian carcinomas, prostatic adenocarcinomas, pulmonary carcinomas and malignant mesotheliomas were 81.8%, 42.8%, 66.7%, 30.5% and 53.4%, respectively. Carcinomas of breast, kidneys, salivary glands, adrenal glands and nasopharyngeal carcinomas also showed various degrees of positive reaction. The results suggest that an immunohistochemical positive vimentin reaction does not exclude histopathological diagnosis of carcinomas. The significance and noticeable aspects of immunohistochemical methods in histopathological diagnosis are also discussed.