MutSa expression predicts a lower disease-free survival in malignant salivary gland tumors:an immunohistochemical study

Appropriate DNA replication is vital to maintain cell integrity at the genomic level. Malfunction on DNA repair mechanisms can have implications related to tumor behavior. Our aim was to evaluate the expression of key complexes of the DNA mismatch-repair system MutS? (hMSH2-hMSH6) and MutS? (hMSH2-hMSH3) in a panel comprising the most common benign and malignant salivary gland tumors (SGT), and to determine their association with disease-free survival. Ten cases of normal salivary gland (NSG) and 92 of SGT (54 benign and 38 malignant) were retrieved. Immunohistochemistry was performed for hMSH2, hMSH3, hMSH6. Scanned slides were digitally analyzed based on the percentage of positive cells w…