[The role of immunohistochemical examination in the differential diagnosis of atypical tumors and carcinomas of parathyroid glands].

Abstract

Differential diagnosis of atypical parathyroid tumors (APT) and parathyroid carcinomas (PC) is important in determining further management and prognosis. Morphologic diagnosis is sometimes difficult, in which case it is supplemented by immunohistochemical (IHC) examination.

Objective: Studying the role of IHC analysis in the differential diagnosis of APT and PC.

Material and methods: The study included 44 patients with morphologic diagnosis of the APT established after surgical treatment for primary hyperparathyroidism on the basis of Endocrinology Research Centre during 2018-2023. All cases underwent IHC examination with evaluation of CD31/CD34 and parathormone (PTH) expression for identification of vascular invasion, Ki-67, parafibromin.

Results: According to the results of IHC analysis in 8/44 patients (18.2%) the diagnosis of APT was revised in favor of the PC: in 7 of them vascular invasion was detected; in 1 patient the additional series of slices in the surrounding fatty tissue revealed foci of tumor growth, confirmed by positive reaction with antibodies to PTH. According to IHC results, the material was divided into 2 groups: APT and PC. There were no differences in clinical and morphological characteristics, Ki-67% level and parafibromin expression between the groups.

Conclusion: Assessment of clinical and laboratory-instrumental data at the preoperative stage does not allow differentiating APT from PC. In case of APT diagnosis and detection of suspicious morphological features, it is necessary to perform IHC examination to exclude PC.