Angiogenesis in squamous cell carcinomas of canine skin: an immunohistochemical and quantitative analysis.

In a number of recent papers, the intratumoral microvessel density (iMVD) has been described as a promising new prognostic factor. In this study, the angiogenic rate was evaluated immunohistochemically for platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule (CD31) in 15 squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs) of canine skin. Computer image analysis was used to measure the iMVD, which increased progressively from differentiation grade I to IV. The iMVD was consistently and significantly greater in the poorly differentiated SCC cases. The correlation of angiogenesis data with differentiation grade of canine SCCs suggests that the iMVD value may provide an additional criterion for evaluating the intrinsic malignancy and growth potential of such tumours. Copyright Harcourt Publishers Ltd.