July, 2017/ Vol 5/Issue 07 ISSN- 2321-127X Original Research Article International Journal of Medical Research and Review Available online at: www.ijm rr.in 731 | Page EGFR scoring in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and its association with clinicopathological variables Rathore S 1 , Rashmi MV 2 , Singh P.K. 3 1 Dr. Smriti Rathore, Consultant Pathology, Valencia Hospital, Faridabad, Haryana, 2 Dr. Rashmi MV, Professor, Department of Pathology, Sri Siddhartha Medical College, Tumkur, Karnataka, 3 Dr. Prashant Kumar Singh, Registrar, Indraprastha Apollo, Delhi, India. Address for Correspondence: Dr. Smriti Rathore, Email: dr.smritirathore@yahoo.in .................................................................................................................................................................................... Abstract Background: Head and Neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the seventh most common cancer in the world with poor overall survival rate which is unchanged during the last two decades. Aim: Aim of our study is to measure the level of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) expression in HNSCC by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and to correlate EGFR with clinicopathological variables. Settings and Design: Cross sectional study from 1 st October 2012 to 31st of March 2014 was performed. Materials and Methods: After taking detailed history and a thorough examination, biopsy/ specimen of HNSCC region were evaluated to confirm the diagnosis of HNSCC. Paraffin blocks of such tumors were processed for EGFR staining. Staining intensity was evaluated by using scale from 1 to 4. Statistical Analysis: Chi-square test was used as appropriate for data analysis. Results: In the present study 38/50 (78%) patients were diagnosed as well differentiated, 12/50(24%) were diagnosed as moderately differentiated. For EGFR staining, 24/50 (48%) scored as +2, 16/50(32%) as +3, 8/50(16%) as +1 and 2/50(4%) scored as 0. 23/38(60.5%) well differentiated SCC cases presented as +2, 5/38(13.2%) as +3, 8/38(21.1%) as +1 and 2/38(5.3%) as 0. 11/12(91.6%) moderately differentiated SCC cases were scored as +3, 1/12(8.3%) as +2. p value 0.001, which is highly significant. However, correlation of EGFR scoring with patients age, sex, addiction history, site of the tumor was insignificant. Conclusion: EGFR was highly expressed in HNSCC. The result of our study showed that, high EGFR scoring was associated with high grade of the tumor. There was no significant relationship between EGFR scoring and clinicopathological variables. Key words: Epidermal growth factor receptor, Immunohistochemistry, Head and Neck squamous cell carcinoma. .................................................................................................................................................................................... Introduction Head and Neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a heterogeneous and complex disease, having a severe impact on quality of life of patients and survivors. At the time of diagnosis 60-70% of patients present with advanced disease affecting survival of the patients negatively [1]. Oral cavity, oropharynx, hypopharynx and laryngeal cancers, when grouped together as head and neck cancer, constitute seventh most common cancer in the world [2]. HNSCC is the most common cancer in developing countries. It is the most common cancer among males in India and the fifth most common in Manuscript received: 28 th June 2017 Reviewed: 8 th July 2017 Author Corrected: 17 th July 2017 Accepted for Publication: 24 th July 2017 females [3]. It causes devastated effects on communication and swallowing. The overall five years survival rate is among the lowest of the major cancers and has not changed during the past two decades [4,5]. Many factors interplay in the phenomenon of carcinogenesis. These include hereditary factors, hormones, ageing, immune status and background radiation. In Indian subcontinent, chewing tobacco in the form of betel quid, bidi smoking and drinking locally brewed crude alcoholic drinks are the major causative factors [6,7]. All normal cells require stimulation on the basis of signals to undergo growth, differentiation and proliferation,