Using markers of proliferation to predict the progression of oral dysplasia
department or school: Dentistry, Faculty of
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCV
creator: Haxhiavdija, Natyra
issued: 2025-10-21T21:48:20Z
issued: 2025
related degree: Master of Science - MSc
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: Predicting the malignant transformation risk of oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) is critical for effective patient management and cancer prevention. In this study, we performed a layer-based analysis of immunohistochemically stained OED biopsy sections to assess cell proliferation patterns layer-wise in oral epithelial dysplasia to determine if proliferation can be used as a biomarker to predict the progression of low-grade OED. The study consists of a longitudinal patient cohort of 26 progressors and 53 non-progressors, with a minimum of 5 years of follow-up for non-progressors or progression to severe dysplasia, carcinoma in situ (CIS), or oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Biopsies were digitally scanned, and the epithelial tissue was delineated into basal, parabasal, suprabasal, and higher layers. Proliferation, as indicated by Ki67 expression, was automatically quantified. Findings demonstrate that the non-progressing cases display significantly higher proliferation within the parabasal layer compared to progressing cases (p < 0.001). In analyses of layer combinations, the parabasal layer is present in every statistically significant result. In contrast, any proliferative activity in suprabasal layers and above fails to reach statistical significance. The findings suggest that the absence of normal proliferation activity in the progressing samples is linked to malignant transformation. While proliferation alone is insufficient as a predictive biomarker, the layer-specific analysis produces novel insights into OED biology and highlights potential avenues for further research.
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/92689
note: Using Markers of Proliferation to Predict the Progression of Oral Dysplasia by Natyra Haxhiavdija B.D.Sc., The University of British Columbia, 2021 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE AND POSTDOCTORAL STUDIES (Craniofacial Science) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) October 2025 © Natyra Haxhiavdija, 2025 ii The following individuals certify that they have read, and recommend to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for acceptance, the thesis entitled: Using Markers of Proliferation to Predict the Progression of Oral Dysplasia submitted by Natyra Haxhiavdija in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Craniofacial Science Examining Committee: Dr. Denise Laronde, Professor, Faculty of Dentistry, University of British Columbia (UBC) Co-supervisor Dr. Martial Guillaud, Senior Scientist, Integrative Oncology, BC Cancer Research Centre Co-supervisor Dr. Lewei Zhang, Professor, Faculty of Dentistry, UBC Supervisory Committee Member Dr. Miriam Rosin, Senior Scientist, Cancer Control Research, BC Cancer Research Centre Supervisory Committee Member Additional Supervisory Committee Members: Dr. Cathie Garnis, Senior Scientist, Integrative Oncology, BC Cancer Research Centre Supervisory Committee Member iii Abstract Predicting the malignant transformation risk of oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) is critical for effective patient management and cancer prevention. In this study, we performed a layer-based analysis of immunohistochemically stained OED biopsy sections to assess cell proliferation patterns layer-wise in oral epithelial dysplasia to determine if proliferation can be used as a biomarker to predict the progression of low-grade OED. The study consists of a longitudinal patient cohort of 26 progressors and 53 non-progressors, with a minimum of 5 years of follow-up for non-progressors or progression to severe dysplasia, carci…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
date issued: 2025-11
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0450513
language: eng
degree discipline: Craniofacial Science
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
scholar level: Graduate
contributor: Laronde, Denise
contributor: Guillaud, Martial
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/92689