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Androgen Receptor Expression Shows Distinctive Significance in ER Positive and Negative Breast Cancers

Annals of Surgical Oncology volume 21, pages 2218–2228 (2014)Cite this article

Abstract

Background

Androgen receptor (AR), a nuclear steroid hormone receptor, is differentially expressed in breast cancer subgroups with distinct clinical implications.

Methods

To investigate the clinical significance of AR in breast cancers more precisely, the expression of AR in a large cohort of breast cancer was correlated with clinicopathological features, biomarker expression, and patients’ survival according to different molecular groupings in this study.

Results

Higher AR expression was found in ER+ (57.8 %) than in ER− (24.7 %) cancers. In the ER+ cancers, AR expression was associated with favorable clinicopathological features, including lower grade (p < .001), lower pT stage (p < .001), and positivity for PR (p < .001). It was an independent prognostic factor for longer disease-free survival, mainly in the HER2+ luminal B cancers (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.251, 95 % CI 0.065−0.972, p = .045). In ER− cancers, AR expression was associated with features distinct from basal-like breast cancer, and such features were found in molecular apocrine (MA) cancers. AR correlated with presence of extensive in situ component (p = .006) and apocrine phenotype (p < .001), HER2 (p = .026), and EGFR (p = .048), but negatively with c-kit (p = .041), CK5/6 (p < .001), CK14 (p = .002), and αB-crystallin (p = .038). However, AR expression was found only in 37.8 % of immunohistochemically defined MA. Of note, AR−MA appeared to have a trend of worse overall survival than AR+MA.

Conclusions

AR expression was different in ER+ and ER− cancers and had different clinical implications. AR alone may not be a good marker for MA subtype. Its expression in MA may have substantial prognostic implication and as such warrants further validation.

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Author information

Affiliations

  1. Department of Anatomical and Cellular Pathology, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

    Julia Y. S. Tsang PhD, Yun-Bi Ni MMSc & Gary M. Tse FRCPC

  2. Department of Pathology, Kwong Wah Hospital, Hong Kong, China

    Siu-Ki Chan FHKCPath

  3. Department of Pathology, Shenzhen Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Traditional, Chinese Medicine, Shenzhen, China

    Mu-Min Shao MMSc

  4. Breast Center, Union Hospital, Hong Kong, China

    Bonita K. B. Law FRCS

  5. Department of Pathology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore

    Puay Hoon Tan FRCPA

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  1. Julia Y. S. Tsang PhD
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  2. Yun-Bi Ni MMSc
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Correspondence to Gary M. Tse FRCPC.

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Tsang, J.Y.S., Ni, YB., Chan, SK. et al. Androgen Receptor Expression Shows Distinctive Significance in ER Positive and Negative Breast Cancers. Ann Surg Oncol 21, 2218–2228 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-014-3629-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-014-3629-2

Keywords

  • Breast Cancer
  • Estrogen Receptor
  • Androgen Receptor
  • Progesterone Receptor
  • Triple Negative Breast Cancer