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[Expression of cathepsin D in breast cancer and its clinical and histopathological correlations]
M C Ramírez-Ortega1, M Frías-Mendívil, R Delgado-Chávez
1División de Investigación Básica, Instituto Nacional de Cancerología, México, D.F.
Background:
Cathepsin D is a lysosomal protease which is overexpressed in some cases of breast cancer. Several studies done in tumor cytosol have shown that high levels of cathepsin D are associated with poor prognosis in patients with breast cancer but the results are not conclusive using immunohistochemistry methods to assay cathepsin D.
Objective:
To evaluate if cathepsin D, assayed by a immunohistochemical technique using a polyclonal antibody, can be considered an independent prognostic factor in breast cancer.
Patients And Methods:
Paraffine embedded sections of 68 tumor specimens from breast cancer patients in stages I to IV seen at the Instituto Nacional de Cancerologia during the period from 1985 to 1986.
Results:
From the 68 patients, 35 (51%) had an intense positive staining for cathepsin D, 19 (28%) han mild staining and 14 (21%) were negative. Ten patients with mild staining had artifacts due to deficiencies in the tissue fixation technique. Cathepsin D expression did not have a prognostic value nor association with other clinical and histopathological prognostic factors well established in breast cancer.
Conclusion:
Cathepsin D determined by immunohistochemistry has no prognostic value in breast cancer.