Study of expression of P53 in Gastric Carcinoma – As a prognostic indicator

Cancer of stomach remains the major cause of mortality worldwide despite a marked decline in the incidence of gastric carcinoma in the industrialized nations. Gastric cancer is the end result of multifactorial, multigenetic, multistep process. The knowledge of the factors that influence gastric carcinogenesis is determinant for the development of strategies effective for prevention and treatment. Our study emphasizes upon the role of p53 as a prognostic indicator of gastric carcinoma. 50 cases of gastric biopsies were taken at random over a period of 4 years, and p53 expression of these lesions was studied. Gastric carcinoma cases were followed and the TNM staging was assessed. In our study, p53 expression was associated with younger age group, increased depth of invasion and lymph node metastasis, thereby indicating that p53 is a prognostic indicator for gastric carcinoma.