Immunohistochemical evaluation of p53 oncoprotein in transitional cell carcinoma of the upper urinary tract

The p53 gene, which is located on human chromosome 17, encodes for a nuclear phosphoprotein and is thought to regulate cell growth and proliferation. Although the immunoreactivity for p53 oncoprotein in transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the urinary bladder has been shown to correlate with clinicopathologic findings and prognoses, there have been no such reports on TCC of the upper urinary tract (TCC-UUT). The present study investigated the prognostic value of p53 oncoprotein in TCC-UUT. Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumor tissues from 149 TCC-UUT patients were analyzed using immunohistochemical staining. Immunohistochemically, p53 oncoprotein was recognized as positive in 26.8% of the samples. The immunoreactivity for p53 oncoprotein was significantly (P < .05) correlated with both stage, grade, and pattern of growth. The 5-year disease-free and overall survival rates were 58.4% and 69.7%, respectively. A univariate analysis of survival showed that stage, grade, pattern of growth, and the immunoreactivity for p53 oncoprotein have a significant effect on disease-free and overall survival rates. In the final models of multivariate analysis, only stage for disease-free survival, and stage and the immunoreactivity for p53 oncoprotein for overall survival were found to be progressive or prognostic factors. Detection of immunoreactivity for p53 oncoprotein appears to be of real value in deciding the prognosis of TCC-UUT.