Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

EGFR expression correlates with decreased disease-free survival in triple-negative breast cancer: a retrospective analysis based on a tissue microarray

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Medical Oncology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the prognostic value of EGFR expression for patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Clinical data of these patients were collected and analyzed, and immunohistochemical staining for EGFR was performed on tissue microarrays of operable breast cancer from 287 patients with TNBC, who were treated at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center from January 1995 to December 2008. EGFR expression was found in 36.2% of the cases with TNBC. A significant correlation was found between EGFR expression and disease-free survival (DFS). Univariated analysis indicated that EGFR expression had a significant prognostic value in TNBC patients, whereas multivariate analysis indicated that EGFR was a significant independent prognostic factor of DFS (P = 0.011) in all patients. Our results suggested that EGFR was an independent prognostic factor of DFS in patients with TNBC. Therefore, EGFR could become a good therapeutic target in the treatment of TNBC.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Dent R, et al. Triple-negative breast cancer: clinical features and patterns of recurrence. Clin Cancer Res. 2007;13:4429–34.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Carey LA, et al. The triple negative paradox: primary tumor chemosensitivity of breast cancer subtypes. Clin Cancer Res. 2007;13:2329–34.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Tischkowitz M, et al. Use of immunohistochemical markers can refine prognosis in triple-negative breast cancer. BMC Cancer. 2007;7:134.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Bauer KR, et al. Descriptive analysis of estrogen receptor (ER)-negative, progesterone receptor (PR)-negative, and HER2-negative invasive breast cancer, the so-called triple-negative phenotype: a population-based study from the California cancer Registry. Cancer. 2007;109:1721–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Hines SL, et al. Clinical outcomes after a diagnosis of brain metastases in patients with estrogen- and/or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive versus triple-negative breast cancer. Ann Oncol. 2008;19(9):1561–5.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Lin NU, et al. Sites of distant recurrence and clinical outcomes in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer: high incidence of central nervous system metastases. Cancer. 2008;113(10):2638–45.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Nam BH, et al. Breast cancer subtypes and survival in patients with brain metastases. Breast Cancer Res. 2008;10(1):R20.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Schneider BP, Winer EP, Foulkes WD, et al. Triple-negative breast cancer: risk factors to potential targets. Clin Cancer Res. 2008;14(24):8010–8.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Pakkiri P, et al. Current and future approach to the pathologist’s assessment for targeted therapy in breast cancer. Pathology. 2009;41(1):89–99.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Reis-Filho JS, et al. Triple negative tumours: a critical review. Histopathology. 2008;52(1):108–18.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Klijn JG, et al. The clinical significance of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in human breast cancer: a review on 5232 patients. Endocr Rev. 1992;13:3–17.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Tsutsui S, et al. Prognostic value of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and its relationship to the estrogen receptor status in 1029 patients with breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2002;71:67–75.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Torregrosa D, et al. Prognostic significance of c-erbB-2/neu amplification and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in primary breast cancer and their relation to estradiol receptor (ER) status. Clin Chim Acta. 1997;262:99–119.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Ciardiello F, et al. EGFR antagonists in cancer treatment. N Engl J Med. 2008;358:1160–74.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Arnes JB, et al. Expression of epidermal growth factor receptor in relation to BRCA1 status, basal-like markers and prognosis in breast cancer. J Clin Pathol. 2009;62:139–46.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Buchholz TA, et al. Epidermal growth factor receptor expression correlates with poor survival in patients who have breast carcinoma treated with doxorubicin-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Cancer. 2005;104:676–81.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Kononen J, et al. Tissue microarrays for highthroughput molecular profiling of tumor specimens. Nat Med. 1998;4:844–7.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Nielsen TO, et al. Immunohistochemical and clinical characterization of the basal-like subtype of invasive breast carcinoma. Clin Cancer Res. 2004;10:5367–74.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Cheang MC, et al. Basal-like breast cancer defined by five biomarkers has superior prognostic value than triple-negative phenotype. Clin Cancer Res. 2008;14:1368–76.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Tan DS, et al. Triple-negative breast cancer: molecular profiling and prognostic impact in adjuvant anthracycline-treated patients. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2008;111:27–44.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Conflict of interest

All authors have no conflicts of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Guangzhou, 510060, People’s Republic of China

    Donggen Liu, Jiehua He, Zhongyu Yuan, Shusen Wang, Roujun Peng, Yanxia Shi, Xiaoyu Teng & Tao Qin

  2. Department of Medical Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, 510060, People’s Republic of China

    Donggen Liu, Zhongyu Yuan, Shusen Wang, Roujun Peng, Yanxia Shi, Xiaoyu Teng & Tao Qin

  3. Department of Pathology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, 510060, People’s Republic of China

    Jiehua He

Authors
  1. Donggen Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jiehua He
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Zhongyu Yuan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Shusen Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Roujun Peng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Yanxia Shi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Xiaoyu Teng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Tao Qin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zhongyu Yuan.

Additional information

Jiehua He contributed equally to this work.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Liu, D., He, J., Yuan, Z. et al. EGFR expression correlates with decreased disease-free survival in triple-negative breast cancer: a retrospective analysis based on a tissue microarray. Med Oncol 29, 401–405 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-011-9827-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-011-9827-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation