Programmed death ligand-1 expression and its association with the degree of differentiation and the presence of necrosis in non-small cell lung carcinoma

• Published in: Pathology, research and practice research and practice, 2023-02, Vol.242, p.154296-154296, Article 154296
• Main Authors: Blichárová, Alžbeta, Tancoš, Vladimír, Benetinová, Zuzana, Verbóová, Ľudmila, Grendár, Marián, Mazuráková, Alena, Plank, Lukáš, Mechírová, Eva
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adenocarcinoma - pathology; B7-H1 Antigen - metabolism; Biomarkers, Tumor - metabolism; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung - pathology; Cell Differentiation; Humans; Hypoxia-inducible factor 1; Hypoxic signaling pathways; Lung Neoplasms - pathology; Necrosis; Non-small cell lung carcinoma; Programmed death ligand-1
• ISSN: 0344-0338; 1618-0631
• DOI: 10.1016/j.prp.2022.154296

The mechanisms underlying the expression of programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) are not yet fully clarified. In this study, surgical resections of 730 lung cancer patients with diagnosed NSCLC were analyzed. Results of PD-L1 immunohistochemistry (using clone 22C3) were correlated with clinicopathological variables including the degree of tumor differentiation and the presence of confluent areas of coagulative necrosis. PD-L1 immunohistochemistry was analyzed in tumor cells, whereas PD-L1 positivity was defined as membranous staining in ≥ 1 of tumor cells. A significantly higher proportion of PD-L1 positive cases was noted in poorly differentiated (grade 3) adenocarcinomas compared to better differentiated (grade 1 and grade 2) subtypes (63.8 % vs. 28.7 %; p