Gonadotropin and steroid receptors as prognostic factors in advanced ovarian cancer: a retrospective study.
BACKGROUND
Ovarian cancer is a chemosensitive tumour, but two thirds of women have a recurrence during the follow- up, even after an optimal surgical debulking followed by chemotherapy with a platinum and a taxane compound. Cytotoxic drugs are used in a second- or third-line setting but tumour progression is the rule. Also patients with the same histology achieve different outcomes in terms of survival. We decided to study gonadotropin and steroid receptors and to consider if these histological markers could select patients with different prognosis.


METHODS
In our study we have measured by immunohistochemistry oestrogen, progestin and gonadotropin- releasing hormone receptors (Gn-RHRs) in paraffinembedded ovarian cancer tissue in a sample of 62 consecutive patients with advanced ovarian cancer treated with surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy. Descriptive methods, a survival analysis (Kaplan-Meier) and a Cox regression analysis were done.


RESULTS
Oestrogen receptors (ERs) were positive in 65% of patients and the same positivity was obtained for progestin receptors (PRs), with 74% showing some positivity for Gn-RHR receptors. Maximal cytoreduction and ERs, but not gonadotropin receptors, were independently associated with overall survival, with better survival for oestrogennegative tumours. No association was established for progression- free survival.


CONCLUSIONS
We can conclude that ER status in our series is an independent prognostic factor for ovarian cancer with better survival for oestrogen-negative receptor tumours. PRs could also have a prognostic role in association with ERs.
Alonso
Lorenzo
L
Medical Oncology Service, Hospital Universitario Virgen de la Victoria, Málaga, Spain. ljalonso@uma.es
Gallego
Elena
E
González
Francisco Jesús
FJ
Sánchez-Muñoz
Alfonso
A
Torres
Esperanza
E
Pajares
Bella Isabel
BI
Leeflang
Stephanie
S
Baha
Camelia
C
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018450:Disease Progression; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006062:Gonadotropins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000379:methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism*; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen / Q000378:metabolism; D011966:Receptors, LHRH / Q000378:metabolism; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone / Q000378:metabolism; D011987:Receptors, Steroid / Q000378:metabolism*; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D006062:Gonadotropins; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen; D011966:Receptors, LHRH; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone; D011987:Receptors, Steroid