Analysis of Vascularity of Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Buccal Mucosa

BACKGROUND and OBJECTIVES: Angiogenesis, the process that leads to the formation of new blood vessels, continues to be a topic of major scientific interest. As knowledge of the molecular mechanisms that regulate neovascularization continues to emerge, there is increasing hope that new discoveries will lead to newer therapies that target angiogenesis as a reliable option for disease therapy. The objective of this study was to assess the role of vascularity, correlation of morphometric aspects of vascularity, investigate its usefulness in the histopathological classification and prognosis in NBM, leukoplakia and SCC of buccal mucosa. METHOD: The study sample consisted of 15 cases of NBM, 30 cases of leukoplakia and 30 cases of SCC of buccal mucosa. The 75 archival samples were stained by H and E and MT. RESULTS and INTERPRETATION: The combined MVD of all the cases in H and E was 0.1112 and for MT 0.2150 which was statistically significant. The mean MVD in SCC (0.3455) for MT was higher than NBM (0.1314) and leukoplakia (0.1263). The mean MVD increased from stage III (0.3563) to stage IV (0.5312). It also increased from NBM (0.1314) to hyperkeratosis (0.1505) to squamous cell carcinoma.