Do medulloblastoma tumors meet the Food and Drug Administration criteria for anti-erbB2 therapy with trastuzumab?
Several publications have recently focused on the erbB2 receptor in pediatric medulloblastomas (MBs) and its prognostic consequence. We determined erbB2 expression in 23 MBs at diagnosis. After DNA extraction, quantitative PCR targeting the erbB2 gene was performed and correlated with FISH analysis and immunohistochemistry. The samples were representative of the spectrum of the disease apart from the absence of large cell MBs. Using the tools validated for breast cancers by the FDA, we did not observe any expression or amplification of erbB2 and hence we speculate that MBs are not a good target for treatment with anti-erbB2 antibodies.
Entz-Werle
Natacha
N
INSERM U682, 3 avenue Molière, 67200 Strasbourg, France. Natacha.entz-werle@chru-strasbourg.fr
Velasco
Valérie
V
Neuville
Agnès
A
Geoerger
Birgit
B
Mathieu
Marie-Christine
MC
Guerin
Eric
E
Kehrli
Pierre
P
Gaub
Marie-Pierre
MP
Vassal
Gilles
G
Grill
Jacques
J
D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002528:Cerebellar Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002648:Child; D018734:Genes, erbB-2; D006801:Humans; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D008527:Medulloblastoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000032:analysis / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D000068878:Trastuzumab; D014481:United States; D014486:United States Food and Drug Administration; D023041:Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D000068878:Trastuzumab