title: Hormone receptors do not predict the HER2/neu status in all age groups of women with an operable breast cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In breast cancer, there is an inverse relationship between HER2/neu overexpression and receptors for estrogen (ER) or progesterone (PR). Some clinical observations such as the age-related association between hormone receptors and tumour grade, which predicts HER2/neu overexpression, suggest an age-related relationship.
  
  
  METHODS
  Our study population consisted of 1362 consecutive women receiving primary surgery for non-metastatic invasive breast cancer. We compared the relationship between both hormone receptors and HER2/neu overexpression in different age groups taking other tumour characteristics into account.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In a multivariate model, considering the overall group, a negative ER, a negative PR and a high tumour grade were predictive for HER2/neu overexpression (P <0.001). Considering 246 women aged < or =45 years, the only predictor for HER2/neu overexpression in this age category was a high tumour grade (P = 0.003). Considering the 1116 women aged >45 years, ER (P = 0.001), PR (P = 0.001) and tumour grade (P <0.001) were associated with HER2/neu (P <0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings indicate that the association between ER, PR and HER2/neu overexpression varies with age. The hormone receptors are not an independent predictor for the HER2/neu status in young women while they are in elder patients.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gynecologic Oncology in Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Levven University Hospital, Levven, Belgium.
authors.forename: H J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Neven
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Drijkoningen
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Paridaens
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wildiers
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Van Limbergen
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Berteloot
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Amant
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Vergote
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Christiaens
mesh_terms: D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness / Q000473:pathology; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen / Q000378:metabolism*; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone / Q000378:metabolism*; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone