C-erbB-2, one of epidermal growth factor receptor gene family, may have an important role in progression of transitional cell carcinoma (TCCD of the urinkary bladder. We herein immunohistochemically examinedd 52 bladderd TCC spectimens for
expression of
c-erbB-2 gene product to investigate its prognostic value. Interrelationshp between expression of c-erbB-2 and stage, grade, expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and clinical ortcomes were analyzed. Overexpression of c-erbB-2
was
significantly higher in invasive tumors as compared with superficial tumors and in high grade tumors as compared with low grade tumors (p<0.005). Howerver, there were no significant correlations between the degree of expression of c-erbB-2 and
progression-free survival in patients with superficial bladder TCC asd well as actual-survival in patients with invasive bladder TCC. There also was no significant correlation betwene the expression opf c-erbB-2 and PCNA.
These results suggest that cd-derbB-2 may be an important marker of malignant potentials and invasiveness of bladder TCC, but immunohistochemical study for its expression in bladder TCC may not provide additional prognostic information to stage
and
grade of the tumors.
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