title: HER2 expression in thyroid tumors.
abstract: Similarities exist in hormone receptors of breast, prostate, and thyroid tumors. HER2 oncogene expression is known to be present in breast and prostate tumors, but conflicting data have been published about its presence in thyroid tumors. This uncertainty prompted us to examine the incidence of HER2 overexpression in normal and malignant thyroid tissue. Normal and neoplastic thyroid tissue samples from 46 female and 9 male patients were assayed for HER2 expression by immunohistochemical assay. Of the 55 total samples, 36 were from neoplasms and 19 were from benign tissues. Significant HER2 overexpression was not found in any benign or malignant thyroid tissue. Two of 6 thyroid carcinomas from male patients showed 1+ reactivity for HER2 expression on immunohistochemistry assay, but remained negative on fluorescene in sito hybridization confirmatory testing. No significant expression of HER2 was noted in benign or malignant thyroid tissue. These results cast doubt on the value of HER2 as a prognostic factor or possible target for specific antitumor therapy for thyroid cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Wake Forest University Medical Center, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27158, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Mondi
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rich
authors.forename: Phillip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ituarte
authors.forename: Mariwil
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bergman
authors.forename: Orlo H
authors.initials: OH
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.forename: Nancy D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Perrier
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D018734:Genes, erbB-2 / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism*