ER81 Expression in Breast Cancers and Hyperplasia

ER81 is a transcription factor that may contribute to breast cancer; however, little known about the role of ER81 in breast carcinogenesis. To investigate the role of ER81 in breast carcinogenesis, we examined ER81 expression in IDC, DCIS, ADH, HUT, and normal breast tissues by immunohistochemical staining. We found that ER81 overexpression was detected in 25.7% (9/35) of HUT, 41.2% (7/17) of ADH, 54.5% (12/22) of DCIS, and 63.0% (51/81) of IDC. In 20 of breast cancer tissues combined with DCIS, ADH, and HUT, ER81 expression was found in 14/20 (70%) IDC. In these 14 cases all cases were ER81 positive expression in DCIS, 13 of 14 cases were positively expressed of ER81 in ADH and 8 of 14 were positive for ER81 in HUT components. A statistical significance was found between NBT and HUT (P < .05) and HUT and ADH (P < .05). Clinical-pathological features analysis of breast cancer revealed that ER81 expression was significantly associated with Her2 amplification and was negatively associated with ER and PR expression. Our results demonstrated that ER81 overexpression was present in the early stage of breast development that suggested that ER81 overexpression may play an important role in breast carcinogenesis.