AgNOR quantity as a prognostic tool in hyperplastic and neoplastic parathyroid glands

Prediction of evolution of secondary hyperplasia and tumours of the parathyroid glands is still a problem in histopathology. To assess whether the quantity of silver-stained nucleolar organiser region (AgNOR) proteins might be used as a prognostic tool in parathyroid pathology, a standardised AgNOR analysis has been performed on 19 cases of parathyroid hyperplasia caused by secondary hyperparathyroidism (PH), 8 cases of adenoma (PA) and 10 cases of carcinoma (PC). Clinico-pathological data and follow-up information were available. On formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded sections, the visualisation and quantification of AgNORs were achieved according to the 1995 guidelines of the Committee on AgNOR Quantification. Then, the mean area (square micrometres) of AgNORs per nucleus (NORA) was evaluated by means of an image analyser and specific softwares. After testing the normal distribution of NORA values, statistical parametric tests were utilised; Kaplan-Meier and Cox multivariate analyses were also performed. In parathyroid lesions, a progressive increase of mean NORA values was observed from PH (2.895 mu m(2); SE 0.171) through PA (3.638 mu m(2); SE 0.125) to PC (4.701 mu m(2); SE 0.179); these differences were highly significant (P<0.001), although some degree of overlap was found among single NORA values. A significantly higher mean NORA value was revealed in PC with distant metastases than was noted in cases with no current clinical evidence of disease progression. Furthermore, a significantly (P<0.001) higher mean NORA value was encountered in the group of PH with recurrences (3.600 mu m(2); SE 0.106) than in nonrecurrent PH (2.261 mu m(2); SE 0.087). Multivariate analyses indicated that the NORA value was an independent prognostic parameter determining the risk of recurrence in PH. We suggest that AgNOR quantity may be a promising additional tool for predicting the biological behaviour of parathyroid lesions.