Background To evaluate the expression and test the clinical significance of the epithelial cellular adhesion molecule (Ep-CAM) in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) to check the suitability of esophageal SCC patients for Ep-CAM directed targeted therapies. levels, 1+ (26%), 2+ (11%) and 3+ (41%). Heterogeneous expression was observed at all expression levels. Interestingly, tumors with 3+ Ep-CAM expression conferred a significantly decreased median relapse-free survival period (log rank, p = 0.0001) and median PD184352 (CI-1040) IC50 overall survival (log rank, p PD184352 (CI-1040) IC50 = 0.0003). Multivariate survival analysis disclosed Ep-CAM 3+ expression as independent prognostic factor. Conclusion Our results suggest Ep-CAM as an attractive molecule for targeted therapy in esophageal SCC. Considering the discontenting results of the current adjuvant concepts for esophageal SCC patients, Ep-CAM might provide a promising target for an adjuvant immunotherapeutic intervention. Background Advances in surgical techniques over the last decade improved the outcome of patients with squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) of the esophagus significantly. However, in comparison to other gastrointestinal malignancies, esophageal SCC belongs to the more aggressive tumors with 5-year survival rates averaging below 30 per cent [1,2]. From the survival data of patients receiving surgery with curative intention it is obvious, that at the time of initial diagnosis in most patients unperceived tumor cell spread has occurred. The results of current multimodal adjuvant and neoadjuvant strategies for esophageal SCC to eliminate the minimal residual tumorload are still unsatisfactory and due to their unspecificity afflicted with significant side effects [3-5]. Therefore new adjuvant therapeutic concepts are urgently needed to eradicate effectively the minimal residual disease and to improve the post-operative prognosis of esophageal SCC patients. A promising basis for new systemic anti-cancer therapy represents the epithelial cellular adhesion molecule Ep-CAM, encoded by the 9-exon gene TACSTD1 [6,7] (Ep-CAM, EGP 40, GA733-2, 17-1A) that was recently re-mapped to chromosome 2p21 [8]. EpCAM is a 40 kD type I transmembrane glycoprotein with two epidermal growth factor like repeats in the external domain and a short intracellular domain consisting of two -actin binding sites for actin cytoskeleton linkage and functions as an intercellular adhesion molecule modulating cadherin-mediated adhesions and thereby adhesion strength [9-12]. The physiologic IL1R2 antibody expression of Ep-CAM in adult human tissues is strictly restricted to the basolateral cell membrane of glandular, pseudo-stratified and transitional epithelia, whereas normal squamous stratified epithelia are Ep-CAM negative [13]. Interestingly, de PD184352 (CI-1040) IC50 novo expression of Ep-CAM occurs during squamous cell carcinogenesis of the oral cavity and of the lung[14]. The expression level increases during the progression from mild dysplasia to carcinoma [14]. Although the biological role of Ep-CAM in healthy tissues and in cancer is not understood conclusively, its overexpression is observed in several cancer types and has been associated with poor prognosis in breast cancer [15,16] and gallbladder cancer [17]. Of much interest, from the clinical point of view, is the possibility to use Ep-CAM as a target for immunotherapy [18-21]. So far, very few data are available regarding Ep-CAM expression in esophageal cancer. Here we investigated the expression and prognostic impact of Ep-CAM in esophageal SCC to test the potential value of this PD184352 (CI-1040) IC50 molecule for antibody based adjuvant therapy in this aggressive cancer. Methods The ethics committee of the chamber of physicians of Hamburg approved this study. Informed consent was obtained from all patients before inclusion into the study. Tumor samples were collected from 70 patients with resectable esophageal carcinoma who had undergone radical en bloc esophagectomy at the University Hospital Hamburg Eppendorf, Germany. Tumor stage and grade were classified by the routine histopathologic assessment according to the UICC (Union Internationale Contre le Cancer) Classification for Malignant Tumors [22,23] from pathologists unaware of the immunohistochemical findings. The survival analysis was calculated from 53 patients PD184352 (CI-1040) IC50 with R0 resection, where at least two months of prospectively evaluated clinical follow-up was available. Seventeen patients were excluded from the survival analysis because of metastatic disease (n = 5), perioperative death (n = 5), non-tumor free resection margins (n = 5) and lost for follow-up (n = 2). The clinico-pathologic data are presented in.