Background: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common form of renal malignancy. The existing prognostic factors (tumor staging and grading) are considered inadequate as many patients with similar tumor characteristics seem to show different clinical outcomes. This has increased the need for evaluating the role of many molecular biomarkers. This study was undertaken to determine the expression profile of Fascin, an actin bundling protein in RCC. Methods: This cross sectional study was carried out among 64 RCC cases received in the Department of Pathology for a period of four years. Fascin immuno histochemistry was done on the representative paraffin blocks and the slides were examined for membrane and cytoplasmic positivity. The data was statistically analysed with “SPSS Version 23” software. Results: There was a significant statistical correlation between the nuclear grade and fascin expression. However there was no correlation between tumor stage and fascin expression. We also observed a statistically significant correlation between fascin immuno staining and RCC with sarcomatoid changes (p<0.05). Conclusion: Targeted therapy for Fascin may be used as a treatment modality for high grade RCC and RCCs showing sarcomatoid changes.

Keywords: Renal cell carcinoma; Fascin; Sarcomatoid changes.