title: Overexpression of c-erb-B2 proteins in tumor and non-tumor parts of gastric adenocarcinoma--emphasis on its relation to H. pylori infection and clinicohistological characteristics.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was designed to test whether c-erb-B2 overexpression can be related to H. pylori infection or clinicohistological characteristics of patients with gastric cancers.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred patients with gastric cancer were included. Their gastric specimens were evaluated for the presence of H. pylori infection and overexpression of c-erb-B2 on both tumor and non-tumor mucosa. The clinicohistological characteristics, including stage, histological subtype, cell differentiation, and locations of gastric cancer were reviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-five patients (75%) had H. pylori infection. The H. pylori infection rate was higher in the patients with non-cardiac cancers than those with cardiac cancers (87.5% vs. 25%, P < 0.05), higher in the patients with intestinal-type cancers than those with diffuse-type cancers (78.8% vs. 53.3%, P < 0.05). The overexpression of c-erb-B2 on gastric cancers was not significantly different between patients with and without H. pylori infection (30.7% vs. 36%, P = NS). Overexpression of c-erb-B2 on the gastric cancer tissues increased as the tumor stage turned upward (stage I: 10%; II: 23.3%, III: 32.5%, IV: 55%, P < 0.05), and highest in the poorly differentiated cancers (56.6%). Only patients with advanced stages as II to IV had c-erb-B2 overexpression on the non-tumor part of stomach (P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  H. pylori infection is closely related with the non-cardiac, intestinal-type gastric cancers, but not with the c-erb-B2 overexpression on the gastric cancer. As c-erb-B2 overexpression on gastric cancer is significantly related with poor tumor differentiation and advanced stage, and it thus implicates a poor prognosis and late event of carcinogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Chung Hwa College of Medical Technology, Tainan, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yen-Lin
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Bor-Shyang
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Sheu
authors.forename: Hsiao-Bai
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Pin-Wen
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Yu-Chung
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Chang
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000473:pathology; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / Q000502:physiology; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000235:genetics*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013272:Stomach Diseases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases