Estrogen and Progesterone Expression in Colorectal Carcinoma: A Clinicopathological Study

Sex steroids have been suggested to influence colorectal cancer (CRC) carcinogenesis. Also, exposure to exogenous hormones might contribute to its incidence. This study conducted to evaluate ER and PR expression as a prognostic factor in patients with CRC attending Sohag University Hospital (SUH) and Sohag Cancer Center (SCC).

Tumor samples tested for Estrogen receptor (ER) / progesterone receptor (PR) expression using immunohistochemical staining (IHC). Association of this expression with overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were evaluated.

Thirty out of 50 CRC tissues were evaluable for hormone receptor expression. Expression of both ER and PR was cytoplasmic. ER and PR expressions were 60% and 76.66%, respectively. There was a significant difference between loss of ER expression and depth of invasion (p= 0.01). Also, ER and PR negative expression cases were significantly at higher risk for progression (p= 0.03; 0.009 respectively). High levels of ER and PR expression were associated with higher cumulative PFS at one year and at the end of follow up time (p=0.01; 0..02 respectively); however this did not reach statistical significance on Cox proportional hazards regression analysis for progression or OS (p= 0.05; HR= 0.22; p=0.5; HR=0.67 respectively) for ER level and (p=0.07; HR=0.22; p=0.6; HR=0.72respectively) for PR level.

This study suggests that lower ER/PR expression levels were associated with more extensive CRC primary tumors and poorer prognosis. These data suggest that ER/PR expression might possess a prognostic value for CRC cases.
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