The hormonal receptors and HER2 status in the carcinomas of the mammary gland

摘要

Introduction: Breast cancer is a major public health problem in the developing countries, where it is the most common cancer among women, and in the developed countries, where its incidence continues to increase. The labelling of the hormonal receptors by immunochemical methods allows the identification of hormonosensible tumours. The knowledge of HER2 status is essential for the selection of the patients with breast cancer for treatment with Herceptin~R (trastuzumab). Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the expression of the hormonal receptors (oestrogen, progesterone) as well as HER2 status in a series of breast cancer patients admitted in the laboratory of pathologic anatomy of Pasteur institute in Morocco to select the patients who may benefit from the treatment. Patients and methods: Forty-one patients with breast cancer have been included in this study. All the patients have been admitted at the laboratory of pathologic anatomy of Pasteur institute in Morocco. For the immunolabelling of the hormonal receptors, we used primary antibodies: anti-receptor antibody to oestrogens and antireceptor antibodies to the progesterone. In order to emphasize the over-expression of HER2 protein, we used the Herceptest~R (DAKO). Results: 58.6% of the breast cancers in which we performed immunohistochemical analysis were positive for oestrogen receptors, and 65.8% were positive for progesterone receptors. For the evaluation of HER2 status by Herceptest~R, 17% showed strong overexpression of HER2 (score 3+), 26% had a score of 2+ and 54% were considered negative (score 0+ and 1+). Conclusion: The analysis of the oestrogen and progesterone receptors by immunohistochemistry is crucial for therapeutic management. Patients with tumours overerx-pressing HER2 strongly (score 3+) benefit from treatment with trastuzumab.