Immunohistochemical expression of ER, PR and AR in papillary thyroid carcinoma

Abstract

Background & objectives: From all types of thyroid carcinomas, papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most common type. The present study aimed at evaluating the immunohistochemical expression of estrogen receptors (ERs), progesterone receptors (PRs) and androgen receptors (ARs) in PTC compared to goiter. Methods: The retrospective study included 12 cases of PTC and 6 cases of goiter. The cases were diagnosed in the period between December 2020 and March 2021. All of them were retrieved from our database and immunohistochemical staining of formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissues was performed, for ERs, PRs and ARs. Results: From twelve cases of PTC, three were male and nine were female with age range from 19 to 72. All of the goiter cases were female patients, with age range from 34 to 64. Six out of twelve PTC cases were positive for ER in comparison to two out of six goiter cases with a statistically significant difference (p < 0,05). Regarding PR, eight out of twelve PTC cases were focaly positive, and all of the goiter cases were negative. Ten out of twelve cases of PTC were positive for AR, in comparison to one out of six goiter cases with a statistically significant difference (p < 0,05). Conclusion: The results of the present study indicate that malignant cells in PTC express ER, PR and especially AR, in comparison to goiter. That is suggesting that these hormonal receptors may play a role in thyroid cancer tumorigenesis, and that these patients may benefit from hormonal therapy, which should be verified in further studies.