Journal
HUMAN PATHOLOGY
Volume 39, Issue 10, Pages 1431-1437Publisher
W B SAUNDERS CO-ELSEVIER INC
DOI: 10.1016/j.humpath.2008.03.004
Keywords
breast cancer; tissue microarray; biomarker; immunohistochemistry; basal phenotype
Categories
Funding
- Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance
- Sanofi-Aventis
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Gene expression studies have identified a basal phenotype of breast cancer; these are hormone receptor and HER2-negative cancers with poor prognosis. High levels of cyclin E and Skp2, and low levels of p27 have previously been individually associated with both basal-like breast cancer and a poor outcome after diagnosis. The goal of this study was to first confirm the prognostic value of these biomolecular markers using a breast cancer tissue microarray. Second, we also test the hypothesis that the combined phenotype of high cyclin E, low p27, and high Skp2 would be a strong predictor of outcome and would be closely associated with the basal phenotype of breast cancer. Our cohort consisted of 438 cases of breast cancer and the median follow-up was 15.4 years. The tissue microarray was constructed from archival tumor blocks and we used commercially available antibodies for biomarker immunostaining. Cyclin E was positive in 46% of cases, p27 was negative in 62%, and Skp2 was positive in 35%. We found cyclin E and Skp2 to be prognostic for breast cancer-specific survival in univariate analyses, but p27 was not prognostic. The strongest predictor of outcome was the combination of cyclin E positive and Skp2 positive (difference in survival of 19% at 10 years, P = .0009). This combination was present in 78 (27%) of 288 cases for which data on both biomarkers were available. This combination was also highly associated with young age at diagnosis, grade 3 tumors, ER-negative status, HER2-negative status, and the basal biomarkers epidermal growth factor receptor and cytokeratin 5/6. However, in a multivariate model including standard clinicopathologic variables, this combination was not found to have independent prognostic significance. In conclusion, the combination of high cyclin E and Skp2 expression predicts for poor prognosis in breast cancer in univariate analysis only, it is associated with high risk features, and it is associated with the basal phenotype. (c) 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available