Prognostic significance of EGFR-1 and VEGF-A expression in feline cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma

IntroductionCutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is a prevalent malignancy in cats, and advanced cases remain challenging to manage due to their high potential for local invasion and recurrence. Epidermal growth factor receptor 1 (EGFR-1) and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) have emerged as promis- ing prognostic biomarkers in epithelial tumors, given their roles in proliferation, invasion, and angiogenesis. This study aimed to evaluate EGFR-1 and VEGF-A immunoexpression in cats with cSCC treated with electrochemotherapy (ECT) and their associations with clinicopathological variables and survival outcomes.MethodsImmunohistochemical expression of EGFR-1 and VEGF-A was evaluated in tumor samples from 33 cats with cSCC enrolled prospectively (n = 24) and retrospec- tively (n = 9). Associations between immunoexpression scores and clinicopatho- logical variables, overall survival time (OST), disease-free interval (DFI), and time to progression (TTP) were assessed using appropriate statistical tests.ResultsEGFR-1 positivity was detected in 78.8% (26/33) of cases and was significantly associated with shorter OST, perineural invasion, and intense inflammatory infiltrate. VEGF-A immunoexpression was detected in 71.9% (23/32) of cases and was significantly associated with previous history of cSCC, perineural invasion (PNI), and tumor invasion beyond the subcutaneous fat.DiscussionThese findings suggest that EGFR-1 and VEGF-A immunoexpression are associated with clinicopathological variables linked to aggressive tumor behavior in feline cSCC, supporting their potential role as prognostic biomarkers in this species and warranting further investigation in larger cohorts.