Sex steroid receptors in papilloma, normal mucosa and polyps of the nose.

Sex steroid hormone receptors (SSHR) were determined in 14 cases of sinonasal papillomas, 17 cases of nasal polyps and in the normal nasal mucosa of 13 patients. The determination of SSHR was done by the dextran-coated charcoal assay from cytosol protein. All the cases of sinonasal papilloma were SSHR negative, while some specimens of normal nasal mucosa contained small amounts of SSHR. In addition, some cases of nasal polyps were found to contain low concentrations of the receptors, but concentrations were lower than those found in normal mucosa. Although nasal papillomas are more common in men than in women, this study shows that SSHR do not play any role in the development of these tumors.