Bcl-2 Expression In Breast Cancer Research Articles

Significance of Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer

Introduction and Aim: The most prevalent and lethal form of cancer in women, breast carcinoma is thought to account for 2,088, 849 (11.6%) of all new cases each year. Protooncogene Bcl-2 is primarily present in the perinuclear membrane. Examining the significance of Bcl-2 expression as a predictive factor in breast cancer is the goal of the current investigation. Materials and Methods: From December 2019 to January 2021, a tertiary care hospital in Chennai conducted this investigation on 42 cases of mastectomy specimens. Using tools from Path Insitu, Bcl-2 marker immunohistochemistry was carried out. Scores were taken after observing Bcl-2 expression in the cytoplasm of tumor cells. Results: Total 42 cases were studied, and the age of patient ranged from 33-80 years. Out of 42 cases of IDC-NST (Invasive ductal carcinoma- No special type) 19 cases (45%) showed positive expression and 23 cases (54%) showed lack of staining for Bcl-2. Tumor size and grade of IDC-NST has significant relationship with Bcl-2 expression with p value of 0.05. No correlation has been found between lymph nodes harboring malignant cells and Bcl2 expression with p value >0.05. Conclusion: The staging and prognosis of breast cancer depend heavily on the size, grading based on histopathology, and lymph node harboring tumor cells. Hormonal receptor tests are frequently used in the process of treating breast cancer. The goal of the current investigation was to assess Bcl2's value as an additional marker for prognosis. Significant Bcl-2 expression was seen in tumors of modest histologic grade and size.

The significance of Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer: a 10-year follow-up study

The significance of Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer: a 10-year follow-up study

Androgen receptor and Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer: Survival and prognostic association

Androgen receptor and Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer: Survival and prognostic association

Evaluation of the prognostic value and phenotypic determinants of Bcl-2 expression in breast invasive carcinoma.

e11024 Background: Bcl-2 expression has been related to hormonal dependence and better prognosis of breast cancer. Although some reports suggest that its expression has an independent prognostic value, especially in N positive patients, the clinical relevance of determining Bcl-2 is unclear. The aim of this work was to analyze which other tumor markers predict Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer and explore its prognostic value. Methods: Immunohistochemical expression of ER, PR, Her2-neu, Ki-67, p53, cathepsin-D and Bcl-2 was prospectively examined in a series of 87 consecutive invasive BC patients. Bcl-2 was semiquantitavely scored according to a validated system (Treré, 2007). Correlation between variables was analyzed with Chi-square test; disease free (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were analyzed by log-rank test and Cox models. Results: Patient characteristics: median age 57 yrs (31-86), 64.5% postmenopausal; treatment: 49.5% breast-preserving surgery, 71.6% adjuvant-neoadjuvant chemotherapy, 72.1% adjuvant radiotherapy ; tumor histology: 83.9% ductal invasive carcinoma, 28.2% grade 3; stage: T1:57%, T2:31.2%, T3-4:8.6%, 48.9% nodal metastasis (pN1:36.7%; pN2:12.2%); tumor phenotype: 77.2% ER+ , 78.3% PgR+ , 9.7% Her2-neu+, 50.6% high Ki-67 (>13%). Immunohistochemical evaluation for Bcl-2: 41/87 (47.1%) positive cases. No expression of Bcl-2 was observed in ER/PgR negative tumors (p< 0.001). Bcl-2 expression was associated to histological grade 1-2 (p=0.009), absence of Her2-neu amplification (p=0.03), p53+ status (p=0.008) and lower cathepsin-D expression (p<0.001), but no association was found for proliferation (Ki-67) or stage (pT or pN). A significant effect of Bcl-2 on overall (p=0.27) or disease free survival (p=0.28) was found neither in the whole group nor in pN+ or pN- subgroups. The only independent prognostic factors for DFS were hormone-sensitivity (OR: 0.10; p=0.009) and pN (OR=2.77; p=0.05). Conclusions: Expression of Bcl-2 in invasive breast cancer seems to be dependent on hormonal sensitivity, p53 status and Her2 expression; no independent prognostic value for recurrence or survival was found in our series.

Prognostic influence of BCL2 expression in breast cancer

Although BCL2 has occasionally been suggested as a candidate prognostic factor for breast cancer, it is still not accepted as a prognostic factor. We attempted to validate the role of BCL2 as a prognostic factor of breast cancer. Data on 7,230 primary breast cancer patients from the Seoul National University Hospital Breast Care Center were analyzed. Three current prognostic models, including the St. Gallen model, the Nottingham prognostic index (NPI) model and the TNM model, were used for analysis of the prognostic influence of BCL2. The positive BCL2 group showed more favorable features with regard to clinicopathologic parameters than the BCL2 negative group and a strong correlation was observed between BCL2 and the hormonal receptor. The positive BCL2 group showed better prognosis in overall survival and disease free survival (log-rank test, both p < 0.001), even in all subgroups, than the BCL2 negative group. BCL2 was a significant prognostic factor in both univariate (hazard ratio [HR], 0.361; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.306-0.426; p < 0.001) and multivariate analyses (HR, 0.417; 95% CI, 0.417-0.705; p < 0.001). BCL2 had a strong influence on the established prognostic models, including the St. Gallen model, the NPI model and the TNM model. BCL2 was a powerful independent prognostic factor for breast cancer and had a strong influence on the current prognostic models. Favorable clinicopathologic features and a strong correlation with the hormonal receptor are suggested as the causes of superior survival in patients with BCL2 positive breast cancer.

Different Prognostic Significance of Bcl-2 Based on Cancer Molecular Subtype

Purpose: B-cell lymphoma (bcl)-2 is an anti-apoptotic gene, and it is a poor prognostic factor in various malignant tumors. However, the prognostic significance of bcl-2 expression in breast cancer remains controversial. We investigated the prognostic significance of bcl-2 according to cancer molecular subtype. Methods: We analyzed 411 patients with primary invasive breast cancer who underwent surgery at our institution between 1999 and 2001. The subtypes were classified as luminal (estrogen receptor [ER]+ and/or progesterone receptor [PR]+, irrespective of human epidermal factor receptor 2 [HER2]), triple-negative (ER-, PR-, and HER2-), or HER2 (ER- ,PR-, and HER2+). Results: A total of 236 (57.4%) cases were positive for bcl-2, and bcl-2 expression was significantly associated with earlier stage, lower grade, expression of hormone receptor positivity, and HER2 negativity. No difference in disease-free survival (DFS) was observed based on bcl-2 expression. However, the prognostic significance of bcl-2 varied with subtype; bcl-2 was not a prognosticator in patients with the luminal and HER2 subtypes. However, patients with bcl-2(+) tumors of the triple-negative subtype showed significantly worse DFS than those with bcl-2(-) tumors (p=0.048). In a multivariate analysis, bcl-2 expression remained a significant predictor of recurrence in patients with the triple-negative subtype (hazard ratio, 3.26; 95% confidence interval, 1.40-7.59; p=0.006). Conclusion: The prognostic significance of bcl-2 varied with molecular subtype; bcl-2 expression was a poor prognosticator in patients with the triple-negative subtype, but not in those with the luminal and HER2 subtypes.

Clinicopathologic correlation of beclin-1 and bcl-2 expression in human breast cancer

The human beclin-1 gene, located on chromosome 17q21, has been identified as the mammalian orthologue of Atg6 (autophagy-related gene) and may be a haploinsufficient tumor suppressor gene. The function and expression of beclin-1 in human breast cancer are largely unknown. We investigated the expression of beclin-1 and bcl-2 in human breast cancer. Tissue samples from 125 cases of invasive breast cancer were used for the present study. Immunohistochemical staining for beclin-1 and bcl-2 was evaluated using tissue microarray, then the 2 proteins were correlated with clinicopathologic parameters. Positive beclin-1 expression and bcl-2 expression in breast cancer tissue were observed in 53 cases (42.4%) and 48 cases (38.4%), respectively. Beclin-1 expression was inversely correlated with bcl-2 expression in breast cancer tissue (P = .035). Beclin-1 expression significantly correlated with nuclear pleomorphism and mitotic count. Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer tissue significantly correlated with histologic grade, tubule formation, nuclear pleomorphism, mitotic count, estrogen receptor, and distant metastasis. Our results suggest that beclin-1 might play a role in the inhibition of the development of breast cancer and that inhibition might be due to an interaction with bcl-2 protein.

Bcl-2 expression in breast cancer is down-regulated by trans-arterial administration of chemotherapeutic agents.

Bcl-2 is one of the cytoplasmic oncoproteins, and has been shown to suppress apoptotic cell death. In this study, we investigated the relationship between Bcl-2 expression and effects of chemotherapeutic agents on human breast cancer cells. We examined 26 surgically resected breast tumors with preoperative trans-arterial administration of chemotherapeutic agents and 30 control cases using immunohistochemical methods. In all 26 cases in the chemotherapy group, the breast cancer cells were focally degenerated to various degrees, associated with inflammation and stromal desmoplastic changes. Bcl-2 expression was found in 46% (12/26) of the chemotherapy group and in 67% (20/30) of controls. Of the 12 Bcl-2-positive cases in the chemotherapy group, 5 were diffusely positive [Bcl-2(2+)] and 7 were focally positive [Bcl-2(+)]. Of the 20 Bcl-2-positive cases in the control group, 18 were diffusely positive and 2 were focally positive. We speculate that Bcl-2 expression was down-regulated by trans-arterial administration of chemotherapeutic agents and was associated with apoptosis and degeneration of breast cancer cells.