Prognostic significance of c-erbB-2 oncoprotein expression in intestinal-type adenocarcinoma of the sinonasal tract

✍ Scribed by Oreste Gallo; Alessandro Franchi; Isabelle Fini-Storchi; Gennaro Cilento; Vieri Boddi; Simone Boccuzzi; Carmelo Urso

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 135 KB
• Volume: 20
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1043-3074
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0347(199805)20:3<224::aid-hed7>3.0.co;2-2

✦ Synopsis

Background:

The c-erbb-2 gene codes for a putative transmembrane protein, similar in structure to the epidermal growth factor receptor. amplification and/or overexpression of the gene has been recently described with a prognostic significance in a variety of human adenocarcinomas.

Methods:

A monoclonal antibody against the c-erbb-2 oncoprotein has been used immunocytochemically in a retrospective study of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples from 28 consecutive intestinal-type adenocarcinomas (itacs) of the nose and paranasal sinuses.

Results:

Nine out of 28 primary adenocarcinomas (32%) showed positive staining. clinical follow-up data, available for all patients, suggested in a univariate analysis a correlation between c-erbb-2 expression and poor prognosis, as measured by 5-year disease-free (p = .02) and overall survival curves (p = .07) as well as by recurrence of disease and the appearance of regional and distant metastases (p = .08). in multivariate analysis, c-erbb-2 expression was statistically significant in terms of disease-free survival (p = .046) but not of overall survival (p = .091) in our series.

Conclusions:

These data indicate that c-erbb-2 oncogene activation could be involved in sinonasal tract oncogenesis, with possible prognostic implications.