Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Variability of steroid receptors in multiple biopsies of breast cancer: Effect of systemic therapy

  • Report
  • Published:
Breast Cancer Research and Treatment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Summary

Estrogen receptor (ER) was measured on two or more specimens taken from each of 53 patients with carcinoma of the breast (18 also had progesterone receptor analyzed). Among the 35 patients who had no interval therapy, 27 patients had repeated tests within one month, and only two had reversal of ER results. Among the eight patients who had ER tests 9–36 months apart, four of five ER + lesions (7 + fmol/mg cytosol protein) had ER − metastasis. Among the 18 patients who received systemic therapy, three of ten ER + became ER −, while two of ten ER − became ER +. Our data and reports in the literature are summarized, showing that about 20% of receptor studies among multiple samples are different even when patients received no interval therapy. In asynchronous studies, it is more likely to have ER positive change to negative than vice versa (31% vs 12%). Interval chemotherapy or endocrine therapy tends to increase the occurrence of ER negative relapse among patients with ER positive tumors.

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.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Jensen EV, Block GE, Smith S, Kyser K, DeSombre ER: Estrogen receptors and breast cancer response to adrenalectomy. Nat Cancer Inst Monogr 34: 55–70, 1971

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Jensen EV: Estrogen receptors in human cancers. J Am Med Assoc 238: 59–60, 1977

    Google Scholar 

  3. McGuire WL, Horwitz KB, Pearson OH, Segaloff A: Current status of estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast cancer. Cancer 39: 2934–2947, 1977

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Jensen EV, Polley TZ, Smith S, Block E, Ferguson DJ, DeSombre ER: Prediction of hormone dependency in human breast cancer.In WL McGuire, PP Carbone, and EP Vollmer (eds): Estrogen Receptors in Human Breast Cancer, New York, Raven Press, 1975, pp 37–56

    Google Scholar 

  5. Rosen PP, Menenedez-Botet CJ, Urban JA, Fracchia A, Schwartz MK: Estrogen receptor protein (ERP) in multiple tumor specimens from individual patients with breast cancer. Cancer 39: 2194–2200, 1977

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Kiang DT, Kennedy BJ: Factors affecting estrogen receptors in breast cancer. Cancer 40: 1571–1576, 1977

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Lee Y-TN, Markland FS: Steroid receptors study in breast carcinoma. Med Ped Oncol 5: 153–166, 1978

    Google Scholar 

  8. Webster DJT, Bronn DG, Minton JP: Estrogen receptor levels in multiple biopsies from patients with breast cancer. Am J Surg 136: 337–338, 1978

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Brennan MJ, Donegan WL, Appleby DE: The variability of estrogen receptors in metastatic breast cancer. Am J Surg 137: 260–262, 1979

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Hoehn JL, Plotka ED, Dickson KB: Comparison of estrogen receptor levels in primary and regional metastatic carcinoma of the breast. Ann Surg 190: 69–71, 1979

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Allegra JC, Barlock A, Huff KK, Lippman ME: Changes in multiple or sequential estrogen receptor determinations in breast cancer. Cancer 45: 792–794, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Skinner LG, Barnes DM, Ribeiro GG: The clinical value of multiple steroid receptor assays in breast cancer management. Cancer 46: 2939–2945, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. King RJB: Analysis of estradiol and progesterone receptors in early and advanced breast tumors. Cancer 46: 2818–2821, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Namer M, Lalanne C, Baulieu EE: Increase of progesterone receptor by tamoxifen as a hormonal challenge test in breast cancer. Cancer Res 40: 1750–1752, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Waseda N, Kato Y, Imura H, Kurata M: Effects of tamoxifen on estrogen and progesterone receptors in human breast cancer. Cancer Res 41: 1984–1988, 1981

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Rosenthal LJ: Discrepant estrogen receptor protein levels according to surgical technique. Am J Surg 138: 680–681, 1979

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Newsome JF, Avis FP, Hammond JE, Sherwood S: Sampling procedures in estrogen receptor determinations. Ann Surg 193: 549–554, 1981

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Muschenheim F, Furst JL, Bates HA: Increased incidence of positive tests for estrogen binding in mammary carcinoma specimens transported in liquid nitrogen. Am J Clin Path 70: 780–782, 1978

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Lesser ML, Rosen PP, Senie RT, Duthie K, Menenedez-Botet C, Schwartz MK: Estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast carcinoma: Correlations with epidemiology and pathology. Cancer 48: 299–309, 1981

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Terenius L, Johansson H, Rimsten A, Thoren L: Malignant and benign human mammary disease: Estrogen binding in relation to clinical data. Cancer 33: 1364–1368, 1974

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Silvestrini R, Daidone MG, Di Fronzo G: Relationship between proliferative activity and estrogen receptors in breast cancer. Cancer 44: 665–670, 1979

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Meyer JS, Rao BR, Stevens SC, White WL: Low incidence of estrogen receptor in breast carcinomas with rapid rates of cellular replication. Cancer 40: 2290–2298, 1977

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Meyer JS, Lee JY: Relationships of S-phase fraction of breast carcinoma in relapse to duration of remission, estrogen receptor content, therapeutic responsiveness, and duration of survival. Cancer Res 40: 1890–1896, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Kute TE, Muss HB, Anderson D, Crumb K, Miller B, Burns D, Dube LA: Relationship of steroid receptor, cell kinetics, and clinical status in patients with breast cancer. Cancer Res 41: 3524–2529, 1981

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Collings JR, Levin J, Savage N: Racial differences in oestrogen receptor and peroxidase status of human breast cancer tissue. S Afr Med J 57: 444–446, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Papatestas AE, Panveliwalla D, Pertsemlidis D, Mulvihill M, Aufses AH Jr: Association between estrogen receptors and weight in women with breast cancer. J Surg Oncol 13: 177–180, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Daniell, HW: Estrogen receptors, breast cancer, and smoking. New Eng J Med 302: 1478, 1980

    Google Scholar 

  28. Hrushesky W, Teslow T, Halberg F, Kiang D, Kennedy BJ: Temporal components of predictable variability along the 1-year scale in estrogen receptor concentration of primary human breast cancer. ASCO Abstracts p. 331, March 1979

  29. DeSombre ER, Jensen EV: Estrophilin assays in breast cancer: Quantitative features and application to the mastectomy specimen. Cancer 46: 2783–2788, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. McGuire WL, Pearson OH, Segaloff A: Predicting hormone responsiveness in human breast cancer.In WL McGuire, PP Carbone and EP Vollmer (eds): Estrogen receptors in human breast cancer. Raven Press, New York, 1975, pp 17–30

    Google Scholar 

  31. Anderson KM, Bonomi P, Marogil M, Hendrickson C, Economou S: Comparison of dextran-coated charcoal and sucrose density gradient analyses of estrogen and progesterone receptors in human breast cancer. Cancer Res 40: 4127–4132, 1980

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Sarrif AM, Durant JR: Evidence that estrogen-receptornegative, progesterone-receptor-positive breast and ovarian carcinomas contain estrogen receptor. Cancer 48: 1215–1220, 1981

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, University of Southern California School of Medicine, and the Tumor Surgery Service, Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, 1200 North Stage St., 90033, Los Angeles, California, USA

    Yeu-Tsu N. (Margaret) Lee M.D., F.A.C.S.

Authors
  1. Yeu-Tsu N. (Margaret) Lee M.D., F.A.C.S.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Lee, YT.N.(. Variability of steroid receptors in multiple biopsies of breast cancer: Effect of systemic therapy. Breast Cancer Res Tr 2, 185–193 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01806455

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01806455

Keywords

Search

Navigation