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Differential expression pattern of estrogen receptors, aromatase, and sulfotransferase in breast cancer tissue and corresponding lymph node metastases

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Tumor Biology

Abstract

Patients with hormone receptor positive breast cancer who are treated with endocrine therapy generally have a good prognosis. However, resistance to hormonal therapy and progression occurs, and the reasons for this are manifold. It has been proposed that the local estrogenic environment has a role in the process of local invasion and progression. We have determined the expression pattern of estrogen receptor α, estrogen receptor β, and the epithelial and stromal expression of the estrogen-metabolizing enzymes aromatase and sulfotransferase by immunohistochemistry in tissue arrays, containing 50 paraffin-embedded sets of tissues obtained from breast cancer and from corresponding metastatic axillary lymph nodes of the same patients. We have found statistically significant higher estrogen receptors α and β expression in primary tumors than in corresponding lymph node metastases (p = 0.0004 and p = 0.003, respectively). Aromatase was also expressed more frequently in epithelial as well as in stromal cells of the malignant tumor when compared to according lymph node metastases (p = 0.08 and p = 0.12, respectively). While in lymph node metastases only estrogen receptor α and stromal aromatase expression were correlated (p = 0.01), significant associations were seen between the estrogen receptor β and stromal aromatase, and epithelial sulfotransferase (p = 0.0006 and p = 0.03, respectively) in the primary tumor. We hypothesize that the decreased expression of local estrogens by aromatase, in combination with a decreased expression of estrogen receptors α and β in lymphatic metastases, renders these metastases hormone insensitive and could contribute to the poor response to endocrine therapy that is often seen in nodal-positive tumors.

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Conflicts of interest

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest that could be perceived as prejudicing the impartiality of this scientific work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Special Gynaecology, University of Vienna Medical Center, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria

    Daphne Gschwantler-Kaulich, Anneliese Fink-Retter, Gernot Hudelist, Axel Kaulich & Ernst Kubista

  2. Division of Gynaecopathology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Klaus Czerwenka

  3. Ludwig-Boltzmann-Institute of Clinical Experimental Oncology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Ernst Kubista

  4. Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Villach Medical Centre, Villach, Austria

    Gernot Hudelist

  5. Department of OB/GYN, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

    Christian F. Singer

Authors
  1. Daphne Gschwantler-Kaulich
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  2. Anneliese Fink-Retter
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  3. Klaus Czerwenka
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  4. Gernot Hudelist
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  5. Axel Kaulich
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  6. Ernst Kubista
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  7. Christian F. Singer
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Correspondence to Christian F. Singer.

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Gschwantler-Kaulich, D., Fink-Retter, A., Czerwenka, K. et al. Differential expression pattern of estrogen receptors, aromatase, and sulfotransferase in breast cancer tissue and corresponding lymph node metastases. Tumor Biol. 32, 501–508 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13277-010-0144-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13277-010-0144-3

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