CD163 expression in leukemia cutis

Proper diagnosis of myeloid leukemia cutis (LC) is of great clinical importance but can be difficult because no single immunohistochemical marker is adequately sensitive or specific for definitive diagnosis. Thus, a broader panel of markers is often desirable. CD163 is highly specific for normal and neoplastic cells of the monocyte/histiocyte lineage. In this study, we examined the value of CD163 in the diagnosis of acute myeloid LC.

A total of 34 cases, including 18 cases of myelomonocytic or monocytic LC, 10 cases of myeloid LC without monocytic component and 6 cases of acute lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (ALL), were stained with CD163.

CD163 was expressed in 8 of 18 (44%) of myelomonocytic or monocytic LC and 1 of 10 (10%) of other myeloid LC, but in none of the ALL cases (0/6). CD163 was highly specific (90%) for myeloid LC with a monocytic component, but showed low sensitivity in the diagnosis of both myeloid LC in general (24%) and myeloid LC with a monocytic component (44%).

Our results suggest that CD163 has utility as a specific marker for myeloid LC in conjunction with currently used immunohistochemical stains, but should not be used alone for diagnosis.