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Updated: May 14, 2026
Isolation and Characterization of a Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Subpopulation Having Stem Cell Characteristics
Published on: May 11, 2016
CD133 is a predictor of poor survival in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas
Martin Canis1, Axel Lechner, Brigitte Mack
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Grosshadern Medical Center, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Munich, Germany. martin.canis@med.uni-goettingen.de
Background:
The pentaspan protein CD133 (Prominin-1) is a predictive marker and part of the signature of tumour-initiating cells (TICs) for various cancer entities.
Methods:
The correlation of CD133 expression with clinical parameters was assessed in primary samples of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (n=98) and normal mucosas (n=24).
Results:
A gradual and inversely proportional correlation between CD133 expression in primary tumours and decreased overall survival was observed, along with a positive correlation with the presence of lymph node metastases.
Conclusions:
CD133 has the potential of being a novel clinically relevant prognostic marker for head and neck malignancies, which is possibly involved in regulation of tumourigenicity.
