Overexpression of KLHL22 correlates with poor prognosis in patients with triple-negative breast cancer.

Abstract

Kelch-like family member 22 (KLHL22) is a protein-coding gene that is responsible for several Mendelian diseases and has been reported to promote tumorigenesis and aging. The purpose of this study was to investigate its expression in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and its prognostic significance. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed to examine the expression levels of KLHL22 in 146 patients with TNBC. The Chi-squared test was used to analyze the correlations between KLHL22 expression level and clinicopathological features, and the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Cox multivariate regression model were used to analyze the prognostic significance of KLHL22 in patients with TNBC. The results of immunohistochemical analysis showed that the high expression rate of KLHL22 protein in TNBC was 56.85% (83/146). Further analysis revealed a significantly positive correlation (P<0.05) between KLHL22 expression and primary tumor and regional lymph node status, clinical stage, and relapse. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that patients with low KLHL22 expression had a longer mean survival time than those with high KLHL22 expression (147.93 vs. 90.1 months; P<0.05). In the multivariate analysis, KLHL22 level, P53 expression, and clinical stage were found to be independent prognostic factors for overall survival (P<0.05), while clinical stage and KLHL22 level were independent prognostic factors for progression-free survival (P<0.05). The present study concludes that KLHL22 may serve as a biomarker for poor prognosis in patients with TNBC.