Activated Leukocyte Cell Adhesion Molecule/CD166, a Marker of Tumor Progression in Primary Malignant Melanoma of the Skin

• Published in: The American journal of pathology Vol. 156; no. 3; pp. 769 - 774
• Main Authors: van Kempen, Léon C.L.T., van den Oord, Joost J., van Muijen, Goos N.P., Weidle, Ulrich H., Bloemers, Henri P.J., Swart, Guido W.M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bethesda, MD Elsevier Inc 01-03-2000; ASIP; American Society for Investigative Pathology
• Subjects: Activated-Leukocyte Cell Adhesion Molecule - metabolism; Biological and medical sciences; Biomarkers, Tumor - metabolism; Dermatology; Disease Progression; Humans; Immunoenzyme Techniques; Lentigo - metabolism; Lentigo - pathology; Medical sciences; Melanoma - metabolism; Melanoma - pathology; Melanoma - surgery; Neoplasm Staging; Nevus - chemistry; Nevus - metabolism; Nevus - pathology; Short Communications; Skin - metabolism; Skin - pathology; Skin Neoplasms - metabolism; Skin Neoplasms - pathology; Skin Neoplasms - surgery; Tumors of the skin and soft tissue. Premalignant lesions; Human; Immunohistochemistry; Pathology; Skin disease; Primitive; Malignant melanoma; Tumor progression; Cell adhesion molecule; Skin; Malignant tumor; Adhesion; Invasion
• ISSN: 0002-9440; 1525-2191
• DOI: 10.1016/S0002-9440(10)64943-7

Expression of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM)/CD166 correlates with the aggregation and metastatic capacity of human melanoma cell lines (Am J Pathol 1998, 152:805–813). Immunohistochemistry on a series of human melanocytic lesions reveals that ALCAM expression correlates with melanoma progression. Most nevi (34/38) and all thin melanomas studied (Clark levels I and II) did not express ALCAM. In contrast, immunoreactivity was detected in the invasive, vertical growth phase of 2 of the 13 Clark level III lesions tested. The fraction of positive lesions further increased in Clark level IV (13/19) and in Clark level V (4/4) lesions. ALCAM expression was exclusively detectable in the vertical growth phase of the primary tumor. In melanoma metastases, approximately half of the lesions tested (13/28) were ALCAM positive. According to the Breslow-thickness, ALCAM expression was observed in less than 10% of the lesions that were thinner than 1.5 mm and in over 70% of the lesions that were thicker than 1.5 mm. Our results strongly suggest that ALCAM plays an important role in melanocytic tumor progression and depict it as a new molecular marker for neoplastic progression of primary human melanoma.