Abstract: Objective : To investigate the correlation between the expression of p16 proteinand E- cadherin and clink biological behavior in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Meth-ods :Immunohistochemical method was used to detect the expression of p16 protein and E- cadherin inNPC and inflammatory nasopharyngeal mucosa. Results : The positive expression rate of p16 pro-tein in NPC was significantly lower than that in inflammatory nasopharyngeal mucosa (P<0.05),but this difference was not statistically significant in the expression of E- cadherin (P>0.05). Thepositive expression rate of p16 protein and E- cadherin in stage ⅠandⅡpatients was higher thanthat in stageⅢandⅣpatients, but no statistically significant difference was observed (P>0.05).The expression of p16 protein and E- cadherin did not correlate with lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis as well as post-radiotherapy tumor recurrence and metastasis (P>0.05). Conclusion : Reduced expression of p16 protein may play an important role in the development of NPC.Futher studies are necessary to determine the correlation between the expression of Ecadherinand biological behavior in NPC.