Estradiol receptor and prognosis in human breast cancer and its metastases

Follow-up of 86 patients for at least 40 months confirmed age dependency of receptor binding capacity in primary breast tumors but not in lymph node metastases. In most cases receptor binding capacity was higher in lymph node metastases than in primary tumors. Prognosis of the disease expressed as percentage of patients who survived and had a disease-free interval is related to receptor binding capacity of the primary tumors investigated. In our investigation, a value of 60 fmol/mg protein seems to be a suitable cut-off value to distinguish between breast cancer patients with good and bad prognosis. Receptor levels of lymph node metastases showed a similar behaviour as those of primary tumors related to percentage of patients who survived, but not to disease-free interval.