الفهرس 
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Abstract
Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most prevalent malignant neoplasm. In recent years, numerous prognostic factors associated with oral SCC have been identified. The discovery of cancer stem cells (CSCs) has heralded an exciting era in our understanding of head and neck SCC with significant implications for diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, and ultimately patient outcomes. To date, there have been limited studies concerning the role of LGR-5 in oral SCC. This study was conducted to investigate: 1- The immunohistochemical expression of LGR-5 in the studied SCC cases. 2- The correlations between the levels of expression of LGR5 and the different histological grades of oral SCC. 3- The correlations between the extent of the tumor cells immunoreactivity to LGR-5 and the available clinical data of the studied SCC cases. The results of this study were: Clinical results: This study included forty cases of OSCC with a high tendency for occurrence in old male patients. Male to female ratio was about 2.3: 1. The tongue was the most common site (40 %). In relation to the TNM staging system, majority of cases was in stage III and stage IV respectively (40 %, 30 %). from the findings of this study, we can conclude the following: 1- The expression of LGR5, a CSC-related protein, increased from normal tissues to SCC carcinoma and finally metastases. 2- LGR5 could serve as an important biomarker for early detection of patients at higher risk for carcinogenesis. 3- LGR5 might play a role in SCC progression. 4- LGR5 may serve as an indicator for prognosis of SCC cases. 5- SCC cases with high expression of LGR5 should undergo follow up for long periods as they might have undetectable nodal involvement or secondary tumors.