CORRELATION BETWEEN PLOIDY STATUS, ERB-B2 AND P53 IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICALEXPRESSION IN PRIMARY BREAST-CARCINOMA

In the present study we evaluated the prognostic significance and corr elation between ploidy status, lymph node status, estrogen-progesteron e receptor status and the expression of ERb-B2 and p53 protein in 77 p rimary breast carcinomas. Quantitation of DNA ploidy was determined on Feulgen-stained touch imprints with an image analyzer, whereas locali zation of the immunohistochemical reaction of Erb-B2 and p53 protein w its evaluated in paraffin-embedded tumor specimens with microscopy. Th e DNA histogram was diploid in 17 cases, poly/tetraploid in 24 and ane uploid in 36. We observed no correlation between ploidy status and hor mone receptor content or lymph node status. The expression of Erb-B2 p rotein was observed exclusively in the membrane and in the cytoplasm o f neoplastic cells and was uniformly distributed. Overexpression was o bserved in 89.2% of cases. Aneuploid tumors intensively expressed the oncogene in 20.3 % of cases. A statistically significant correlation w as observed between lymph node metastasis and Erb-B2 overexpression. T he expression of p53 protein was expressed as nuclear staining in 17.6 % of the cases, with variable intensify, mainly in ductal histotypes. Among these, 62% were aneuploid. Lymph node status and steroid recepto r status did not correlate significantly with p53. From these data we conclude that DNA ploidy and Erb-B2 and p53 expression correlate with cell proliferation and differentiation and therefore may identify brea st carcinoma patients with more aggressive disease.