Study of Metallothionein Role in Spinocellular Carcinoma Tissues of Head and Neck Tumours using Brdicka Reaction
Abstract
Malignant tumours of head and neck localisation represent serious health problem. All over the world, there is about 650 000 of patients who fall ill with head and neck carcinoma per year.
Treatment of this malignity is based especially on the well-timed surgery intervention and radiotherapy. Therefore, alternative ways of diagnostics, which would replace commonly used biopsy in combination with computed tomography, are intensely searched.
Attention is devoted especially to molecules, whose levels are changed in body due to malignant process and malignant disease progression. The main objective of this study consisted in determination of metallothionein (/MT)/ levels in tumour tissues of patients suffering from head and neck tumours using differential pulse voltammetry Brdicka reaction.
Fifty-five samples of tumour tissue (45 % laryngeal, 40 % oropharyngeal, 9 % hypopharyngeal and 6 % oral cavity cancer) were included in this study. After describing of differences in differential pulse voltammograms of individual tumour localisations, content of MT were determined in the above mentioned localisations.
The highest MT level was determined in the tissues of oral tumours (170 +/- 70 mu g/g) followed by hypopharynx (160 +/- 70 mu g/g) and larynx (160 +/- 70 mu g/g). The relatively lowest MT level was determined in tumours of oropharynx (130 +/- 50 mu g/g).
MT level related to the size of primary tumour focus oscillates with the increasing tumour size. Notwithstanding this fact, the increasing tendency with tumour disease progression is observable.
Similar tendency was determined for MT level related to the metastatic activity of tumours, where MT level increased with tumour spreading into local lymph nodes. Our results supported findings on the possible connection of MT and tumour progression.