Presence of Intratumoral Stem Cells in Breast Cancer Patients with or Without Brca Germline Mutations.
Summary of "Presence of Intratumoral Stem Cells in Breast Cancer Patients with or Without Brca Germline Mutations."
Background: BRCA-1/2 germline mutations are responsible for early onset breast cancer and familial association. The underlying causes of the characteristic phenotypic behaviour are not completely understood, but mammary stem cells appear to have a key role in this process. Materials and Methods: We have investigated the presence of mammary stem / progenitor cells in normal tissues and in tumour tissues obtained from women with and without BRCA1/2 germline mutations by utilizing ALDH-1 immunohistochemistry. Results: Isolated ALDH-1 positive cells were found in 15/28 (54%) of breast cancer samples from women with BRCA 1 or 2 mutations and in 33 /51 (65%) of matched sporadic breast cancer cases (p=0.5949, Chi Square test). While mammary stem cells were also detected in non-malignant breast lesions, only 41% of the tissues contained ALDH-1 positive cells (p=0.0371, Chi Square test). In patients with BRCA germline mutations ALDH-1 positive cells were more common in p53 positive (p=0.0028, Chi Square test) tumors, in high grade (p=0.0796), and in larger tumors (p=0.0604), while no such association was seen in sporadic cancer cases. In our patients, the expression of ALDH-1 positive cells in breast cancer was neither associated with disease-free and overall survival, nor time to metastasis. Conclusion: Breast cancers from BRCA mutation carriers do not harbour more ALHD-1 positive cells than sporadic tumors, and their more aggressive phenotype can thus not be explained by an increased stem cell pool. The presence of ALDH-1 in normal breast tissue suggests that additional factors determine the biological behaviour of mammary stem cells.
Affiliation
Department of OB/GYN; Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria christian.singer@meduniwien.ac.at.
Journal Details
This article was published in the following journal.
Name: Current cancer drug targets
ISSN: 1873-5576
Pages:
Links
- PubMed Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22111833
- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/
Medical and Biotech [MESH] Definitions
Inflammatory Breast Neoplasms
Metastatic breast cancer characterized by EDEMA and ERYTHEMA of the affected breast due to LYMPHATIC METASTASIS and eventual obstruction of LYMPHATIC VESSELS by the cancer cells.
Brca1 Protein
The phosphoprotein encoded by the BRCA1 gene (GENE, BRCA1). In normal cells the BRCA1 protein is localized in the nucleus, whereas in the majority of breast cancer cell lines and in malignant pleural effusions from breast cancer patients, it is localized mainly in the cytoplasm. (Science 1995;270(5237):713,789-91)
Mucin-1
Carbohydrate antigen elevated in patients with tumors of the breast, ovary, lung, and prostate as well as other disorders. The mucin is expressed normally by most glandular epithelia but shows particularly increased expression in the breast at lactation and in malignancy. It is thus an established serum marker for breast cancer.
Carcinoma, Lobular
A infiltrating (invasive) breast cancer, relatively uncommon, accounting for only 5%-10% of breast tumors in most series. It is often an area of ill-defined thickening in the breast, in contrast to the dominant lump characteristic of ductal carcinoma. It is typically composed of small cells in a linear arrangement with a tendency to grow around ducts and lobules. There is likelihood of axillary nodal involvement with metastasis to meningeal and serosal surfaces. (DeVita Jr et al., Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology, 3d ed, p1205)
Multipotent Stem Cells
Specialized stem cells that are committed to give rise to cells that have a particular function; examples are MYOBLASTS; MYELOID PROGENITOR CELLS; and skin stem cells. (Stem Cells: A Primer [Internet]. Bethesda (MD): National Institutes of Health (US); 2000 May [cited 2002 Apr 5]. Available from: http://www.nih.gov/news/stemcell/primer.htm)
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