[Prolactin in gastric carcinomas: immunohistochemical demonstration with clinicopathologic correlation]

A PAP immunoperoxidase method for demonstration of endogenous prolactin was applied to gastrectomy specimens from 10 patients with gastric ulcers and 154 patients with gastric carcinomas. For gastric ulcers and intact areas of carcinomabearing specimens, the results indicated a positive correlation by demonstration of prolactin in sites of active cellular proliferation such as regenerative epithelium over ulcer beds, neck cells of gastric mucosa proper and the lower third of intestinalized gastric mucosa. In contrast, prolactin was demonstrated in 84 of 154 gastric carcinoma patients with no apparent correlation to the clinical features. However, correlation became manifest after exclusion of 52 patients with poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma (por) because of their unevenly heavy distribution in advanced clinical stages. For the remaining 96 patients with carcinomas other than por, the rate of positive prolactin increased according to the depth of invasion from 10/29 in m & sm to 3/4 in si & sei, the scope of lymph node metastasis from 20/40 in n0 to 4/4 in n3 & n4 and the clinical stages from 12/26 in stage 1 to 15/22 in stage 4. These results suggest a growth promoting role of prolactin on benign and malignant gastric mucosa.