EFFECTS OF SHORT-TERM TAMOXIFEN ADMINISTRATION IN PATIENTS WITH INVASIVE CERVICAL-CARCINOMA

Citation
Lmv. Roig et al., EFFECTS OF SHORT-TERM TAMOXIFEN ADMINISTRATION IN PATIENTS WITH INVASIVE CERVICAL-CARCINOMA, Anticancer research, 13(6B), 1993, pp. 2457-2463
Citations number
58
Categorie Soggetti
Oncology
Journal title
ISSN journal
02507005
Volume
13
Issue
6B
Year of publication
1993
Pages
2457 - 2463
Database
ISI
SICI code
0250-7005(1993)13:6B<2457:EOSTAI>2.0.ZU;2-8
Abstract
Cervical cancel is not considered a hormone-responsive tumor in spite of the presence of estrogen receptors (ER) and progesterone receptors (PgR) in some of them. Endocrine treatments have not achieved clinical responses, however; tamoxifen has been reported to induce PgR and to inhibit cell growth of many cervical carcinoma cell lines. In this stu dy We investigated whether tamoxifen administration affects the histop athological characteristics of cervical cancer and the expression of E R, PgR, HER-2/neu and p53 protein. Nineteen patients with invasive cer vical cancer free of previous treatments wets studied. The triphenylet hylene antiestrogen tamoxifen was given orally during 10 days (20 or 4 0 mg/day). Pre- and post-tamoxifen biopsies were evaluated using slide s stained with hematoxylin and eosin and immunostained (ER, PgR, HER-2 /neu, p53, PCNA, keratin, heat shock protein 27,000 daltons). Estrogen receptors were present in 37% and PgR in 16% of the biopsies from unt reated patients. Only one case that was PgR-negative before tamoxifen administration showed weak PgR-positivity following antiestrogen admin istration. No obvious changes were observed in ER, HER-2/neu and p53 p roteins. A statistically significant decrease in the number of mitotic figures was obtained in 16% (3/19) of the post-tamoxifen biopsies and two of them showed higher differentiation. The results showed that ta moxifen did not induce changes in estrogen-regulated proteins in cervi cal cancer. However, the data showed that certain cervical carcinomas had changes in their proliferation and differentiation levels followin g tamoxifen administration. These findings suggest that tamoxifen may affect some cervical cancel tissues by a hormone-independent mechanism (s).