Korean J Obstet Gynecol.  2006 Jun;49(6):1258-1266.

Expression of HER-2/neu Oncoprotein in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

• Jeong DH
• Kim YN
• Park YM
• Cho IH
• Seo YJ
• Son YS
• Jeong SJ
• Lee KB
• Sung MS
• Kim KT
• Yoon HK

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the significance of the expression of HER-2/neu oncoprotein as a prognostic factor, we retrospectively examined its overexpression rates in epithelial ovarian cancer and their relationships with prognostic factors.
METHODS
Immunohistochemistry for Her-2/neu oncoprotein was performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues from 45 epithelial ovarian cancer operated between 1999 and 2002. We analyzed relationships between the overexpression of HER-2/neu oncoprotein and prognostic factors including age, histologic type, surgical stage, residual tumor > or =2 cm, and recurrence.
RESULTS
The rate of overexpression of HER-2/neu oncoprotein in epithelial ovarian cancer was 31.1% (14/47). The overexpression of HER-2/ neu oncoprotein showed associations with residual tumor > or =2 cm (p=0.049) and recurrence (p=0.029) in univariate analysis. But, there were no associations between the overexpression of HER-2/neu oncoprotein and overall survival.
CONCLUSION
The overexpression of HER-2/neu oncoprotein was associated with residual tumor and recurrence in univariate analysis, but appeared to have no prognostic significance for overall survival of epithelial ovarian cancer. Further and larger prospective studies using multivariate analysis are necessary to establish the clinical applicability of these observations.

Keyword

HER-2/neu oncogene; Epithelial ovarian cancer; Immunohistochemistry

MeSH Terms

Immunohistochemistry
Multivariate Analysis
Neoplasm, Residual
Ovarian Neoplasms*
Recurrence
Retrospective Studies