We investigated p16 expression in leiomyomas with infarct-type necrosis, tumours which may sometimes be misinterpreted as smooth muscle tumours of uncertain malignant potential or even leiomyosarcoma on conventional light microscopy.
We highlight the difficulty in distinguishing tumour cell necrosis from infarct-type necrosis and the limited utility of p16 immunohistochemical expression in the diagnosis of leiomyosarcoma.
In the uterus, p16 positivity is more common and widespread in leiomyosarcomas than leiomyomas, and this may be a useful aid to diagnosis, although problematic uterine smooth muscle neoplasms have not been extensively studied.
To investigate the potential role of p16 in soft tissue leiomyosarcoma (LMS), an immunohistochemical analysis was performed of 77 LMSs for p16 expression.