Mast cell phenotypes and microvessels in non-small cell lung cancer and its prognostic significance

The impact of interstitial inflammatory cells, such as mast cells, and angiogenesis on the prognosis of cancer patients has been reported in many solid tumors, although there is disagreement about their role. We undertook a retrospective study with tissue samples from 65 patients with stage I and II non-small cell lung cancer to assess the clinical pathologic role and prognostic significance of mast cells. Mast cell phenotypes were identified by immunohistochemistry for tryptase and chymase. In addition, we identified microvessels using the endothelial marker CD34. Mast cell and microvessel density was quantified by assessing immunopositive cells in the intratumoral and peritumoral zones of tumor specimens. Both mast cell and microvessel density was higher in the peritumoral zone than the intratumoral zone (P