The c-erbB-2 oncogene has been the subject of heated debate concerning its prognostic significance for women with breast cancer. However, there has been considerable controversy regarding the correlations between c-erbB-2 amplification and
clinical
outcome. We studied the c-erbB-2 expression of primary breast cancer tissues to evaluate the correlations between the c-erbB-2 expression and the known clinicopathologic parameters including age, tumor size, cell size, lymph node metastasis,
mitotic activity, nuclear pleomorphism, extratumoral in situ component, histologic grades, and clinical stages and to elucidate the immunohistochemical localization of c-erbB-2 concogene products in breast cancer.
We used formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded tissue sections from 52 cases of primary breast cancer lesions including several types of carcinoma in situ and invasive breast carcinomas, and stained these immunohistochemically with use of a
monoclonal
antibody directed against a 14 amino acid segment of the c-erbB-2 oncoprotein. Invasive carcinomas comprised infiltrating ductal carcinoma in 21 cases, 7 medullary carcinoma, 6 mucinous carcinoma, and 3 lobular carcinoma. Carcinoma in situ
were
15
cases. Positive membrane staning was found in 9 cases of 21 cases infiltrating ductal carinomas, in 1 cases of 7 cases of medullary carcinomas. No mucinous or lobular carcinomas were positive. Ductal carcinomas in situ showed strong
membrane
stainings(61.5%), especially in comedo subtype. Amplification of c-erbB-2 oncogene did not correlato with age, tumor size, histologic grades, nuclear pleomorphism, and clinical stage (p>0.05). But this correlated with cell size, mitotic
activity,
and extra-tumoral in situ component(p<0.05).
As a result, the c-erbB-2 overexpression may be an early event in the development of a distinct histologic type, mainly in large cell of ductal carcinoma in situ and infiltrating ductal carcinoma, and may be associated with the growth of the
tumor
cells.
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