Interobserver reproducibility of Gleason histological grading of prostatic carcinoma: a study done in a teaching hospital setting in Colombo, Sri Lanka

Introduction : Gleason grading is one of the most important prognostic factors in prostatic carcinoma.

Objective: To assess the interobserver reproducibility of Gleason grading of prostatic cancer among three pathologists in the local setting.

Method: Fifty haematoxylin and eosin stained slides of previously diagnosed prostatic adenocarcinoma were retrieved and graded by using Gleason grading by three pathologists. These were re-graded by the same three pathologists after a time interval of 4 weeks after studying literature highlighting more descriptive criteria on the above grading system. The interobserver reproducibility was analysed using generalised kappa values.

Results: The generalised kappa value for interobserver variation among the three pathologists in the first instance was 0.306 indicating a fair level of agreement and 0.488 in the second instance, indicating a moderate level of agreement. The lowest level of interobserver agreement was observed in the Gleason score 2-4 and 7 categories.

Conclusion: The results emphasises the importance of continuous education of pathologists with regard to the Gleason grading system to reduce the inter observer variation in the grading of prostatic adenocarcnoma

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/jdp.v9i1.7641

Journal of Diagnostic Pathology 2014; 9(1): 18-23