title: C-MET is expressed in the majority of penile squamous cell carcinomas and correlates with polysomy-7 but is not associated with MET oncogene amplification, pertinent histopathologic parameters, or with cancer-specific survival.
abstract: We assessed c-MET expression and oncogene amplification in a cohort enrolling 92 surgically treated penile squamous cell carcinomas (PSCCs). A tissue microarray was constructed for c-MET immunohistochemistry (IHC) and chromogenic silver in situ hybridization (SISH). Two independent pathologists evaluated IHC by employing the breast cancer scoring rules, and scored the presence of MET oncogene amplification and/or polysomy-7. Eighty study cases (87%) showed c-MET expression. No study case had MET oncogene amplification, but 42 patients (45.7%) had polysomy-7. Polysomy-7 showed a significant positive correlation with c-MET expression (ρ=0.323, p=0.002). Neither c-MET expression nor polysomy-7 was associated with histopathologic parameters or with cancer-specific survival (median post-surgical follow-up 32 months). Our data suggest that the majority of PSCCs exhibit c-MET expression which is not associated with oncogene amplification, but might be attributable to polysomy-7. Further studies should investigate the expression and activation of downstream molecules functionally involved in c-MET pathway signaling, and clarify the so far unresolved role of c-MET inhibitors as potential targeted therapies in PSCCs with metastatic dissemination.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Johanniter Hospital Stendal, Germany. sven-gunia@gmx.de
authors.forename: Sven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gunia
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Erbersdobler
authors.forename: Oliver W
authors.initials: OW
authors.lastname: Hakenberg
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Koch
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: May
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000782:Aneuploidy; D001706:Biopsy; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005784:Gene Amplification; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010412:Penile Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D010641:Phenotype; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met / Q000032:analysis* / Q000235:genetics; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D046888:Tissue Array Analysis
chemical_list: D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met