Search

Introduction: Thyroid cancer is the most common type of endocrine cancer, with an increasing prevalence. The possibility of a malignant neoplasm is the primary concern in people with thyroid nodules. The presence of a plethora of variants complicates the diagnostic process. Cytokeratin 19 (CK19), found in normal thyroid follicular epithelium, is upregulated during neoplastic transformation, and CD56, a neural cell adhesion molecule, is downregulated in thyroid follicular cells. This study suggests the use of CK19 and CD56 in combination will help differentiate thyroid neoplasms. Materials and Methods: Total/hemithyroidectomy specimens received in the Department of Pathology, Maharaja Krushna Chandra Gajapati Medical College and Hospital, Brahmapur, Odisha, India, suspected of malignancy, were processed for routine histopathological evaluation using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stain and immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining using CK19 and CD56. The outcomes of each case were recorded and analyzed. Results: A total of 36 cases were evaluated, and the expression of CK19 was found to be 88% sensitive and 79% specific in differentiating malignant from benign thyroid neoplasms. The absence of CD56 expression was found to have 82% sensitivity and 74% specificity in detecting malignant thyroid neoplasms. The combined use of both markers has a sensitivity and specificity of 70.59% and 78.95%. Conclusion: The routine use of CK19 and CD56 by IHC will aid in distinguishing benign from malignant thyroid neoplasms.

Background: Ovarian cancer ranks sixth among women’s cancers globally and seventh among cancer-related deaths. Around 90% of ovarian cancers have an epithelial genesis. Steroid hormones like progesterone and estrogen largely influence the development of ovarian cancers. In ovarian neoplasms, the proliferation marker Ki 67 helps forecast the course of the disease. Objective: To study the immunohistochemical expression pattern of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and Ki 67 in the surface epithelial ovarian tumors (SEOTs) and correlate the findings with the standard histopathological. Materials and Methods: This prospective study was conducted in the Department of Pathology, MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Brahmapur, from November 2020 to October 2022 on 62 surface epithelial ovarian tumor cases. All the patients were evaluated for standard histopathological parameters and immuno-histochemistry (IHC) status using ER, PR, and Ki 67 as primary antibodies. Results: A total of 62 cases of SEOTs constituted the study group, of which 42 (67.74%) were benign, 5 (8.06%) were borderline, and 15 (24.2%) were malignant on histopathological evaluation: serous SEOTs (41, 66.12%), mucinous SEOTs (18, 29.03%), endometrioid SEOTs (2, 3.22%), and clear cell carcinoma (1, 1.61%). ER expression was more in malignant tumors (10/15; 66.66%) than in borderline (3/5; 60%) and benign (11/42; 26.19%), but the expression of PR was more in benign (27/42; 64.28%), followed by borderline (3/5; 60%) and malignant (8/15; 53.33%) SEOTs. Expression of Ki 67 was found to be more malignant (14/15; 93.33%) than borderline (4/5; 80%) and benign (2/42; 4.76%) SEOTs. Conclusion: ER and Ki 67 were expressed more in malignant, followed by borderline and benign, whereas PR expression was more innocent than borderline and malignant.

Background: Iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) in the paediatric age group is prevalent in developing countries like India, especially in the lower socio-economic strata. Early detection and management will prevent the associated morbidity and mortality. Reticulocyte haemoglobin (Ret-Hb) is an indirect assessment of Hb content of reticulocytes by automated haematology analysers. Aims: The present study was aimed to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of Ret-Hb in paediatric IDA and its prognostic efficacy by detecting early response to oral iron supplementation. Materials and Methods: This was an institutional prospective, cross-sectional study. Eighty-two cases of microcytic hypochromic anaemia, in the age group of 1–14 years negative for haemoglobinopathy by high-performance liquid chromatography, constituted the study group. Ret-Hb and serum ferritin (SF) values were correlated with other haematological parameters on day 0 and day 3 after oral iron supplementation and results obtained were statistically correlated. Results: The mean values of Hb, mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular Hb, red cell distribution width-CV (RDW-CV), Ret-Hb and SF were found to be 8.32 ± 1.99 g/dL, 63.44 ± 7.01 fL, 19.25 ± 3.21 pg, 19.16 ± 2.87%, 20.36 ± 3.41 pg and 8.99 ± 1.85 mcg/dL respectively. The Ret-Hb and SF levels were found to be linearly positively correlated with all parameters except RDW-CV which was negatively correlated; a stronger association was noted with the former. After oral supplementation on Day 3, only Ret-Hb showed statistically significant change, i.e., 20.36 ± 3.41 pg to 21.35 ± 3.61 pg (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Ret-Hb was found to be a reliable parameter not only in diagnosing IDA in children but also in detecting early response to oral iron supplementation.