{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.03253090435914118, 'fraction_numerical': 0.004554326610279766, 'mean_word_length': 5.658008658008658, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Cytoplasmic accumulation of alpha-catenin is associated with aggressive features in laryngeal squamous-cell carcinoma.

Aberrations in the function of alpha-catenin (alpha-cat), the anchoring protein of E-cadherin, are believed to cause dysfunction of the cadherin-catenin complex, leading to disturbed cell-cell adhesion. It has been suggested that expression of alpha-cat in human tumours might be a better indicator of aggressive phenotype than expression of E-cadherin. The value of alpha-cat as a prognostic marker in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) is unclear. To determine the potential prognostic significance of alpha-cat, paraffin-embedded samples from 159 patients with invasive carcinoma left in the section and with long-term follow-up were evaluated immuno-histochemically for alpha-cat expression, and the results were related to histopathological grade, tumour stage and survival. Two patterns of staining were observed: pure membranous staining (57%) and membranous staining with cytoplasmic involvement (43%). Cytoplasmic involvement of alpha-cat was associated with dedifferentiation, advanced tumour stage and nodal status. In addition, supra-glottic tumours showed more often cytoplasmic involvement of alpha-cat than glottic tumours. Patients with cytoplasmic involvement appeared to have a trend towards poor overall survival, though without statistical significance. These results suggest that cytoplasmic involvement of alpha-cat is associated with aggressive behaviour and metastatic phenotype of LSCC.