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Updated: Jul 19, 2026
A Model for Perineural Invasion in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Published on: January 5, 2017
Heparanase expression in malignant salivary gland tumors inversely correlates with long-term survival
Ofer Ben-Izhak1, Victoria Kaplan-Cohen, Neta Ilan
1Department of Pathology, Rambam Medical Center, Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
Background:
Upregulation of the endo-beta-D-glucuronidase, heparanase, was noted in an increasing number of human malignancies. Heparanase expression correlated with enhanced local and distant metastatic spread, increased vascular density, and reduced postoperative survival.
Patients And Methods:
We analyzed heparanase expression in 60 patients (aged 59 +/- 17 years) with malignant salivary tumors (39 males and 21 females) using immunohistochemistry. We applied antiheparanase antibody 733, which has previously been shown to preferentially recognize a 50-kDa active heparanase subunit over a 65-kDa latent enzyme. Thus, immunostaining can directly be correlated with enzymatic activity.
Results:
Heparanase staining was positive (> 0) in 70% of tumors (42 of 60 patients) and was negative (0) in the remaining 30% (18 patients). The cumulative survival of patients diagnosed as heparanase-negative (n = 18) at 300 months was 70% (95% confidence interval = 35-88). In contrast, the cumulative survival of patients diagnosed as heparanase-positive (n = 42) at 300 months was 0% (statistically significant difference, P = .035).
Conclusions:
Heparanase expression levels inversely correlate with the survival rates of salivary gland cancer patients, clearly indicating that heparanase is a reliable prognostic factor for this malignancy and an attractive target for anticancer drug development.