Detection of
Detection of CK19 mRNA in the blood of breast cancer Female Egyptian patients and its relation to established prognostic parameters
Amal F. M. Said1 ; Iman l. H. Abulkheir2; Amany Helal3 and Dalia B. Mohammad4
Departments of 1Clinical Pathology; 2Pathology; 3Cancer Oncology and 4Cancer Epidemiology and Biostatistics, National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
Abstract: Purpose Breast cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women Worldwide. The clinical course of this disease is highly variable and clinicians continuously search for prognostic parameters that can accurately predict prognosis. peripheral blood cytokeratin-19 (CK-19) mRNA-positive cells and its correlation with well established prognostic factors including pathologic parameters, hormonal status and biologic marker; HER 2/ neu in breast female Egyptian cancer patients was studied . Patients and Methods A total of 60 peripheral blood specimens were collected for study. Patients were forty newly diagnosed breast cancer and 10 patients with benign breast lesions .The10 apparently healthy donors and patients with benign lesions were used as the control group. They were analyzed for the presence of CK-19 mRNA-positive cells using nested reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assay (RT-PCR). Immunohistochemical staining for HER 2/neu, estrogen and progesterone receptors were carried out for all cases. The association with known prognostic factors and the effect of CK-19 mRNA-positive cells on patients' prognosis was investigated. Results CK-19 mRNA-positive cells were detected in the blood of 14 patients (35%) of the 40 patients. There was statistically significant association between the presence of CK19 mRNA-positive cells and the patients’ tumor size and histologic grade of the tumor, stage of disease and the involved lymph nodes P =<0.001, 0.006 , 0.007and0.005 respectively. CK-19 mRNA-positive cell detection also showed high significance with HER2 expression receptor (p=0.001). None of the patients with CK 19 positive cells expressed dual ER & PR positivity being both negative and either negative. There was no statistically significantly association between the detection of CK19 mRNA-positive cells and patient’s age, menstrual status or pathologic type. Conclusion: Peripheral-blood CK-19 mRNA-positive cells might constitute a biologically active subset of breast cancer patients with high tumor burden and bad prognosis.
[Amal F. M. Said; Iman l. H. Abulkheir ; Amany Helaland Dalia B. Mohammad. Detection of CK19 mRNA in the blood of breast cancer Female Egyptian patients and its relation to established prognostic parameters. Life Sci J 2012;9(1):561-571]. (ISSN: 1097-8135). http://www.lifesciencesite.com. 84
Keywords: Cancer breast, Peripheral-blood, CK-19, RT-PCR, Prognostic factors. Full Text 84
