Immunohistochemical expression of beta-human chorionic gonadotropin in colorectal carcinoma

The presence of human beta-chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) was immunohistochemically studied in 123 cases of primary colorectal carcinoma using the avidin-biotin-peroxidase complex method. Positive staining for HCG was recognized in 45 (36.6%) tumors and a statistical difference was observed between the HCG-positive (n = 45) and -negative (n = 78) groups concerning the frequency of blood vessel invasion in the primary tumor (P < 0.01). The prognosis for patients with HCG-positive carcinoma was thus significantly worse than that for patients with HCG-negative carcinoma (P < 0.05). A multivariate analysis using the Cox hazards model demonstrated the positive or negative staining of HCG to be one of the independent prognostic factors. The above findings show that, in addition to various other prognostic factors, the HCG staining status may thus also help in determining the prognosis of patients with primary colorectal carcinoma.