Aims

There is strong evidence that cribriform morphology indicates a worse prognosis of prostatic adenocarcinoma. Our aim was to investigate its interobserver reproducibility in prostate needle biopsies.

Methods and results

A panel of nine prostate pathology experts from five continents independently reviewed 304 digitised biopsies for cribriform cancer according to recent International Society of Urological Pathology criteria. The biopsies were collected from a series of 702 biopsies that were reviewed by one of the panellists for enrichment of high-grade cancer and potentially cribriform structures. A 2/3 consensus diagnosis of cribriform and noncribriform cancer was reached in 90% (272/304) of the biopsies with a mean kappa value of 0.56 (95% confidence interval 0.52-0.61). The prevalence of consensus cribriform cancers was estimated to 4%, 12%, 21%, and 20% of Gleason scores 7 (3 + 4), 7 (4 + 3), 8, and 9-10, respectively. More than two cribriform structures per level or a largest cribriform mass with >= 9 lumina or a diameter of >= 0.5 mm predicted a consensus diagnosis of cribriform cancer in 88% (70/80), 84% (87/103), and 90% (56/62), respectively, and noncribriform cancer in 3% (2/80), 5% (5/103), and 2% (1/62), respectively (all P < 0.01).

Conclusion

Cribriform prostate cancer was seen in a minority of needle biopsies with high-grade cancer. Stringent diagnostic criteria enabled the identification of cribriform patterns and the generation of a large set of consensus cases for standardisation.