Overexpression of p53 Protein in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma and with its Clinical Significance

Purpose To study the overexpression of p53 protein and to evaluate whether it can be an independent prognostic factor for patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma. Methods p53 protein was measured in papillary thyroid carcinomas ( n =40),normal thyroid tissues ( n= 10) and follicular thyroid adenomas ( n =10) with an immunohistochemical staining.Statistical analysis was based on the log rank test and Cox analysis. Results We found overexpression of p53 protein in 7 cases (17.5%) among 40 papillary thyroid carcinomas.No positive expression was found in both normal thyroid specimens and follicular adenomas.The recurrence rate was clearly higher in patients with overexpression of p53 protein than in patients with low or non expression of p53 protein, P 0.05.The log rank test and Cox analysis with the forward stepwise method for overall survival suggests that p53 protein was an independent prognostic factor for papillary thyroid carcinoma. Conclusions Overexpression of p53 protein was higher in papillary thyroid carcinomas than in normal thyroid tissues and follicular adenomas,The recurrence rate was clearly higher in patients with overexpression of p53 protein than in patients with low or nonexpression of p53 protein,p53 protein was an independent prognostic factor for patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma.