Clinical Implications of FADD Gene Amplification and Protein Overexpression in Taiwanese Oral Cavity Squamous Cell Carcinomas

Amplification of 11q13.3 is a frequent event in human cancers, including head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. This chromosome region contains several genes that are potentially cancer drivers, including FADD (Fas associated via death domain), an apoptotic effector that was previously identified as a novel oncogene in laryngeal/pharyngeal cancer. This study was designed to explore the role of FADD in oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs) samples from Taiwanese patients, by assessing copy number variations (CNVs) and protein expression and the clinical implications of these factors in 339 male OSCCs. The intensity of FADD protein expression, as determined by immunohistochemistry, was strongly correlated with gene copy number amplification, as analyzed using a TaqMan CNV assay. Both FADD gene copy number amplification and high protein expression were significantly associated with lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001). Patients with both FADD copy number amplification and high protein expression had the shortest disease-free survival (DFS; P = 0.074 and P = 0.002) and overall survival (OS; P = 0.011 and P = 0.027). After adjusting for primary tumor status, tumor differentiation, lymph node metastasis and age at diagnosis, DFS was still significantly lower in patients with either copy number amplification or high protein expression (hazard ratio [H.R.] = 1.483; 95% confidence interval [C.I.], 1.044–2.106). In conclusion, our data reveal that FADD gene copy number and protein expression can be considered potential prognostic markers and are closely associated with lymph node metastasis in patients with OSCC in Taiwan.