title: The role of early expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase in human breast cancer.
abstract: Nitric oxide synthases are expressed in breast cancer. To elucidate the clinical role of the inducible NOS (i-NOS) in human breast cancer, 161 primary breast cancer tissues were stained immunohistochemically. Staining patterns for i-NOS were correlated with classical prognostic factors such as lymph node status, age, hormonal receptor status, tumour size and tumour differentiation. With classical prognostic factors such as lymph node status, age, hormonal receptor status, tumour size and tumour differentiation. Patients survival was also analysed. Sixty-one percent of the tumours stained positively for i-NOS. Detection of i-NOS was positively correlated with increasing tumour size and decreasing tumour differentiation (P=0.018 and P=0.039, respectively). However, in the 50 year age group, i-NOS staining also correlated with lymph node status. Patients with i-NOS-positive breast carcinomas had a significantly worse overall survival rate versus those with negative stains (5-year survival rate 84.8% versus 67.1%; P=0.049; log-rank test). To date, this is the largest analysis of i-NOS expression in breast cancer patients and the only study to assess survival.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, J.W. Goethe-University of Frankfurt, Theodor-Stern-Kai 7-9, 60590 Frankfurt am Main, Germany. loibl@em.uni-frankfurt.de
authors.forename: Sibylle
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Loibl
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Buck
authors.forename: Cornelia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Strank
authors.forename: Gunter
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: von Minckwitz
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roller
authors.forename: Hans-Peter
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Sinn
authors.forename: Valerie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Schini-Kerth
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Solbach
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Strebhardt
authors.forename: Manfred
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaufmann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000378:metabolism*; D052247:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II; D017697:Premenopause; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen / Q000378:metabolism; D011982:Receptors, Prostaglandin / Q000378:metabolism; D016019:Survival Analysis
chemical_list: D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen; D011982:Receptors, Prostaglandin; C496319:NOS2 protein, human; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D052247:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II