EpCAM and COX‑2 expression are positively correlated in human breast cancer

Upregulation of the epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) is involved in tumor progression. Cyclooxygenase (COX)‑2 is the key enzyme catalyzing prostaglandin synthesis and is involved in breast cancer progression and metastasis. However, the prognostic value of EpCAM and its putative correlation with COX‑2 in breast cancer have yet to be elucidated. The aim of the present study was to assess the clinical relevance of the relationship between EpCAM and COX‑2, via examining the putative correlation between EpCAM and COX‑2 expression in various types of human breast cancer. A total of 134 breast cancer tissue samples was examined in the present study. Immunohistochemistry approach was used to detect EpCAM and COX‑2 expression in the tissue microarrays. Spearman's correlation analysis was performed to evaluate the correlation between the protein expression and clinicopathological parameters present in patients with various tumor subtypes, with the aim to potentially establish a relationship between EpCAM/COX‑2 and clinical prognosis. Expression of EpCAM and COX‑2 was revealed to be associated with tumor progression, and poor prognosis in breast cancer. The present findings demonstrated that EpCAM was involved in the regulation of COX‑2 expression, and a positive correlation between the proteins was associated with poor prognosis in patients with breast cancer. The present results suggest that EpCAM and COX‑2 may have potential as prognostic biomarkers in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with breast cancer.