Kiani Jawad, Khan Afrasyab, Khawar Hina, Shuaib Fawad, Pervez Shahid
Department of Pathology and Microbiology, The Aga Khan University, Medical Center, Karachi, 74800, Pakistan.
Pathol Oncol Res. 2006;12(4):223-7. doi: 10.1007/BF02893416. Epub 2006 Dec 25.
Aretrospective study comparing the estrogen receptor (ER) alpha subtype and progesterone receptor (PR) profile of breast carcinomas amongst 1625 cases over 2.5 years was carried out. Strictly speaking it is generally believed that breast carcinomas can biochemically express PR only if they are ER-positive. However, a few ERalpha-PR+ cases do exist paradoxically. This class of tumors was the focus of our study in which we looked at the possible reasons for such an immunophenotype and compared it with a group of ERalpha+PR+ breast carcinomas. An internationally recognized immunohistochemical method employing monoclonal antibodies against estrogen and progesterone receptors was used. Correlations with established risk factors i.e. menopausal status, grade, tumor size and lymph node status were analyzed for our study group (ERalpha-PR+) and compared with a control (ERalpha+PR+). Out of the total 1625 cases, 29.91% (486) were ERalpha+PR+, 5.11% (83) were ERalpha+PR-, 56.86% (924) were ERalpha-PR- and 8.12% (132) were ERalpha-PR+. Patients' age was significantly lower in the ERalpha-PR+ group (P=0.002). Statistical analysis of the grading between the two study groups revealed no significant difference (P=0.091), although the ERalpha-PR+ group contained significantly more poorly differentiated tumors than the ERalpha+PR+ one (P=0.032). Tumor size was also significantly larger in the ERalpha-PR+ than in the ERalpha+PR+ group (P=0.046). The frequency of lymph node metastases was independent of receptor profile. In conclusion, our study group does exhibit characteristics which are suggestive of a distinct breast cancer phenotype (ERalpha-PR+) with a different etiology and prognosis.
开展了一项回顾性研究，比较了2.5年期间1625例乳腺癌患者的雌激素受体（ER）α亚型和孕激素受体（PR）情况。严格来说，一般认为只有ER阳性的乳腺癌才会生化表达PR。然而，确实存在一些矛盾的ERα-PR+病例。这类肿瘤是我们研究的重点，我们研究了这种免疫表型的可能原因，并将其与一组ERα+PR+乳腺癌进行比较。采用了一种国际认可的免疫组织化学方法，该方法使用针对雌激素和孕激素受体的单克隆抗体。分析了我们的研究组（ERα-PR+）与对照组（ERα+PR+）与已确定的风险因素（即绝经状态、分级、肿瘤大小和淋巴结状态）之间的相关性。在1625例病例中，29.91%（486例）为ERα+PR+，5.11%（83例）为ERα+PR-，56.86%（924例）为ERα-PR-，8.12%（132例）为ERα-PR+。ERα-PR+组患者的年龄显著更低（P=0.002）。两个研究组之间分级的统计分析显示无显著差异（P=0.091），尽管ERα-PR+组中低分化肿瘤比ERα+PR+组显著更多（P=0.032）。ERα-PR+组的肿瘤大小也显著大于ERα+PR+组（P=0.046）。淋巴结转移频率与受体情况无关。总之，我们的研究组确实表现出一些特征，提示一种具有不同病因和预后的独特乳腺癌表型（ERα-PR+）。
