Elevated CCL20 expression was associated with poor prognosis for breast cancer

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Immunology
• Molecular Biology

Background:

• Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 20 (CCL20) is upregulated in tumor cells, promoting tumor progression by creating an immunosuppressive microenvironment and enhancing tumor aggressiveness.
• Understanding the role of CCL20 in breast cancer is crucial for developing targeted therapies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the expression of CCL20 in breast cancer tissues.
• To evaluate the association between CCL20 expression and clinicopathological features, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers, and patient outcomes (overall survival and disease-free survival).

Main Methods:

• Immunohistochemical staining was performed on 113 breast cancer and adjacent normal tissues to assess CCL20, E-cadherin, vimentin, and N-cadherin expression.
• Statistical analyses included Pearson chi-squared test, Spearman's rank correlation test, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, and Cox proportional hazards regression modeling.

Main Results:

• Cytoplasmic CCL20 expression was significantly higher in cancer tissues (69.9%) compared to normal tissues (23%).
• CCL20 expression strongly correlated with tumor size, estrogen receptor status, Ki67 status, vascular invasion, and tumor-node-metastasis stage.
• CCL20 was identified as an independent predictor of poor overall survival (HR: 3.207, P=0.027) and was associated with unfavorable outcomes across various patient subgroups.

Conclusions:

• Elevated CCL20 expression is linked to a more aggressive breast cancer phenotype and reduced overall survival.
• CCL20 may represent a novel independent prognostic biomarker for breast cancer.
• These findings support the potential use of CCL20 as a biomarker to guide personalized treatment strategies.