title: Correlation of Ezrin Expression Pattern and Clinical Outcomes in Ewing Sarcoma.
abstract: Background. Ezrin is a membrane-cytoskeleton linker protein that has been associated with metastasis and poor outcomes in osteosarcoma and high-grade soft tissue sarcomas. The prognostic value of ezrin expression in Ewing sarcoma is unknown.Methods. The relationship between ezrin expression and outcome was analyzed in a cohort of 53 newly diagnosed Ewing sarcoma patients treated between 2000 and 2011. The intensity and proportion of cells with ezrin immunoreactivity were assessed in diagnostic tumor tissue using a semiquantitative scoring system to yield intensity and positivity scores for each tumor.Results. Ezrin expression was detected in 72% (38/53) of tumor samples. The proportion of patients with metastatic disease was equal in the positive and negative ezrin expression groups. There was no significant difference in the 5-year event-free survival (EFS) between patients with positive versus negative ezrin expression. Patients whose tumor sample showed high ezrin intensity had significantly better 5-year EFS when compared to patients with low/no ezrin intensity (78% versus 55%;P= 0.03).Conclusions. Ezrin expression can be detected in the majority of Ewing sarcoma tumor samples. Intense ezrin expression may be correlated with a favorable outcome; however further investigation with a larger cohort is needed to validate this finding.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Health Sciences Research Building, Brumley Bridge, 3rd Floor, W-350, 1760 Haygood Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1128-784X
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Cash
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, 1405 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Health Sciences Research Building, Brumley Bridge, 4th Floor, W-440-B, 1760 Haygood Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Courtney
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: McCracken
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Health Sciences Research Building, Brumley Bridge, 4th Floor, W-440-B, 1760 Haygood Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Zhi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Geng
authors.affiliation: Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center and Harvard Medical School, 450 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
authors.forename: Steven G
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-7575-2969
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: DuBois
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, 1405 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Bahig M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Shehata
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, 1405 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Thomas A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Olson
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University, Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt, 2220 Pierce Avenue, 396c Preston Research Building, Nashville, TN 37232, USA.
authors.forename: Howard M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Katzenstein
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Health Sciences Research Building, Brumley Bridge, 4th Floor, W-470, 1760 Haygood Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
authors.forename: Cynthia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wetmore