Correlation of ER, PR and HER-2/Neu with other Prognostic Factors in Infiltrating Ductal Carcinoma of Breast.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women in the world. The aim of this study was to assess estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and HER-2/neu of infiltrating ductal carcinoma (IDC) with tumor size, histologic grade, lymph node metastasis and age. METHODS This study was carried out on 300 tissue blocks of patients with IDC who underwent mastectomy from 2007 to 2011 in Shahid Beheshti Hospital, affiliated to Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran. Data including age, tumor size, and histologic grade and lymph node status retrieved from pathology department. RESULT The mean age of the patients was 40.2±2.3 (ranged 19-82 years). ER and PR were positively correlated with each other ( P = 0.001) and they inversely correlated with HER-2/neu ( P =0.001). We observed correlation between ER and PR expression and low histologic grade ( P = 0.001) and HER-2/neu expression and high histologic grade ( P = 0.003). There was correlation between HER-2/neu expression and lymph node involvement ( P =0.03). None of these makers showed correlation with age and tumor size ( P > 0.05). CONCLUSION Our findings indicate the importance of ER, PR and HER-2/neu expression as prognostic factors for therapeutic decision.