Lack of relationship between the expression of Hsp27 heat shock estrogen receptor-associated protein and estrogen receptor or progesterone receptor status in male breast carcinoma.

Estrogen, through estrogen receptors (ERs), may regulate the synthesis of progesterone receptors (PRs) and of a heat shock estrogen receptor-associated protein (hsp27). In female breast carcinoma (FBC) both proteins serve as surrogate indicators for the presence of functional ERs. In addition, the expression of these proteins was related to other prognostic indicators of value in female breast tumours. Endocrine disorders, hormone therapy and altered estrogen metabolism have been associated with the development of male breast cancer (MBC), suggesting that evaluation of the expression of ER, PR and hsp27 might improve our understanding of the biology of this tumour. ER and PR status and hsp27 expression were evaluated by immunohistochemistry in 16 primary MBC patients. The interrelationships between these parameters were established and compared with the clinicopathological data on the tumours. Ten (56%) MBC patients were ER-positive, 69% were PR-positive and all samples were hsp27-positive. Our series of MBC patients showed a positive correlation between ERs and PRs, however there was a lack of correlation between hsp27 and ERs or PRs. MBCs did not exhibit any correlation between the biomarkers studied and known prognostic indicators for females (e.g. Scarff-Bloom-Richardson (SBR) or modified SBR (MSBR) grade, T stage, lymph node status). This is the first published series reporting the incidence of hsp27 in MBC. The lack of association between the expression of ERs and hsp27 found in MBC differs from the results reported for FBC, moreover the expression of ERs, PRs or hsp27 did not correlate with the clinicopathological parameters that have prognostic value in females. Although the data were obtained from a relatively small sample population, our findings suggest that MBC and FBC are biologically different tumours with respect to the expression of the studied proteins.