Abstract
PURPOSE: This study was designed to determine whether those rectal cancers that demonstrated increased vessel ingrowth or angiogenesis behave in a different fashion. METHODS: The paraffin blocks of 48 rectal cancers removed by low anterior or abdominoperineal resection were recalled and immunostained with a monoclonal antibody specific for endothelial cell Factor VIII. The intense reddish brown color imparted to blood vessels facilitated their quantification which was undertaken at ×100 and ×200 magnification. Vessel counts within three microscopic fields were averaged and the relationships between angiogenesis score and tumor size, depth of invasion, incidence of lymph node or distant metastases, and survival were assessed. RESULTS: Significantly higher angiogenesis scores were seen in tumors with transmural penetration (at ×100,P=0.002; at ×200,P =0.002) and in patients dying before five years (at ×100,P =0.013; at ×200,P =0.034). Although higher angiogenesis scores were seen in patients with larger tumors and metastases, these trends were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that the growth of rectal cancer is dependent on the ingrowth of new blood vessels, and that increased vascularity promotes dissemination and adversely affects survival.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Folkman J, Coltran RS. Relation of vascular proliferation to tumor growth. Int Rev Exp Pathol 1976;16:207–48.
Folkman J. What is the evidence that tumors are angiogenesis dependent? J Natl Cancer Inst 1990;82:4–6.
Macchiarini P, Fontanini G, Hardin MJ, Squartini F, Angeletti CA. Relation of neovascularization to metastasis of non-small-cell lung cancer. Lancet 1992;340:145–6.
Weidner N, Semple JP, Welch WR, Folkman J. Tumor angiogenesis and metastasis—correlation in invasive breast carcinoma. N Engl J Med 1991;324:1–8.
Weidner J, Folkman J, Pozza F,et al. Tumor angiogenesis: a new significant and independent prognostic indicator in early-stage breast carcinoma. J Natl Cancer Inst 1991;84:1875–87.
Pinkas GS, Etheridge CL, O'Connor EM. Are keratin proteins a better tumor marker than epithelial membrane antigen? A comparative immunohistochemical study of various paraffin embedded neoplasms using monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies. Am J Clin Pathol 1986;85:269–77.
Hsu SM, Raine L. The use of avidin-biotin peroxidase complex (ABC) in diagnostic and research pathology. In: DeLessis RA, ed. Advances in immunohistochemistry. New York: Masson, 1984:31–42.
Norton AJ, Isaacsson PG. Detailed phenotypic analysis of B-cell lymphoma using a panel of antibodies reactive in routinely fixed wax-embedded tissue. Am J Pathol1987;128:225–40.
Ormanns W, Schaeffer R. An alkaline-phosphatase staining method in avidin-biotin immunohistochemistry. Histochemistry 1985;82:421–4.
Folkman J. Toward an understanding of angiogenesis: search and discovery. Perspect Biolo Med 1985;29:10–36.
D'Amore PA. Growth factors, angiogenesis and metastasis. In: Welch DR, Bhuyan BK, Liotta LA, eds. Cancer metastasis: experimental and clinical strategies. New York: Alan R. Liss, 1986:269–83.
Folkman J, Shing Y. Angiogenesis. J Biol Chem 1992;267:10931–4.
Srivastava A, Laidler P, Davies RP, Horgan K, Hughes LE. The prognostic significance of tumor vascularity in intermediate thickness (0.7:6-4.0 mm thick) skin melanoma: a quantitative histologic study. Am J Pathol 1988;133:419–23.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Supported in part by the Bowman Research Fund. Read at the meeting of The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, Chicago, Illinois, May 2 to 7, 1993. Winner of the Northwest Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons Award.
About this article
Cite this article
Saclarides, T.J., Speziale, N.J., Drab, E. et al. Tumor angiogenesis and rectal carcinoma. Dis Colon Rectum 37, 921–926 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02052599
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02052599