Application of dual immunohistochemical staining in detection of lymphovascular space invasion of breast carcinoma

Objective To evaluate the clinical application of dual immunohistochemical method for the detection of breast cancer lymphovascular space invasion(LVSI).Methods Paraffin-embedded tissue blocks from 53 patients with invasive ductal carcinoma of breast were retrieved.Dual immunostaining for pan-cytokeratin and endothelial cell marker CD34 was carried out on(4?μm) sections cut from these bocks and compared with conventional haematoxylin and eosin staining.Results LVSI was present in 21 of 53 cases by dual immunostaining,while HE showed the presence of LVSI in 11 of 53 cases.In five cases,LVSI seemed probable on HE section.But this was only confirmed by IHC in eight and two cases,respectively.Conclusion Dual immunohistochemistry is a sensitive and specific method for detection of tumour lymphovascular space invasion.