Immunohistochemical Expression of CD44 in Erosive Lichen Planus, Epithelial Dysplasia, and Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

CD44 is a cell surface adhesion glycoprotein found in various cells. The present study aimed to evaluate the immunohistochemical expression of CD44 in the erosive lichen planus (ELP), epithelial dysplasia (ED), and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) to compare the expression in a possible premalignant lesion, a definite premalignant lesion, and a malignancy.
In this descriptive-analytical study, immunohistochemical staining was performed on 10 ELP cases (without dysplasia), five ED cases, and 20 OSCC cases using the standard Envision technique. In addition, the extent and intensity of CD44 staining and thickness of the stained epithelium were assessed. Data analysis was performed in SPSS using Kruskal-Wallis test.
60% of OSCC samples had moderate membranous and cytoplasmic staining, in which more than two-thirds of the epithelium was stained. Moreover, moderate to severe, and mostly membranous immunostaining were observed in all ELP cases, while two-thirds of the epithelium showed immunostaining in all the samples. In the ED samples, staining intensity was reduced in more severe cases, and the staining pattern changed from membranous to cytoplasmic and membranous. Furthermore, in 80% of the ED cases, two-thirds of the epithelium was stained. Comparison of the immunostaining in ELP, ED, and OSCC samples indicated no significant differences between these lesions
According to the results, CD44 expression in ELP, ED, and OSCC had no statistically significant difference. Therefore, this protein might not be an appropriate marker to confirm the premalignancy of ELP or predict the invasion in OSCC and premalignant lesions.