Proliferation profile of benign and premalignant cervical epithelium as established by PCNA staining pattern

Since immunohistochemical detection of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) is closely related to the cell cycle, this method can be used to visualize proliferative activity in paraffin sections of benign and premalignant cervical lesions. This was done in two types of benign lesions, immature and mature metaplasia, and the three types of CIN (I, II, and III). PCNA staining was assessed as heavy, faint, or negative nuclei in the deep, middle, and superficial layers of the epithelium. In the analysis of variance, significant differences between the three layers and between the five groups were found. The PCNA values can be helpful to distinguish immature metaplasia from CIN I. The values for PCNA-positive (heavy+faint) for an individual lesion at the three layers constitute its proliferation profile. The PCNA profiles of the CIN lesions differ fundamentally from the metaplasia profiles. It is conceivable that for an individual CIN lesion, PCNA staining might be prognostically more valuable than its CIN grade.