Evidence map›Paper›PMID 22417870›Full record

Trial reportBreast cancer research : BCR2012

ER and HER2 expression are positively correlated in HER2 non-overexpressing breast cancer.

Isabel Pinhel, Margaret Hills, Suzanne Drury, Janine Salter, Georges Sumo, Roger A'Hern, Judith M Bliss, Ivana Sestak, Jack Cuzick, Peter Barrett-Lee and 3 more

Open access · goldAbstract readClinical Trial, Phase IIIRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Breast cancer research : BCR, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
28citing papers in PubMed
3.3field-weighted citation impact, top 7% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

28 citing papers in PubMed, 65 citations in OpenAlex.

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  19. Cancer and the metastatic substrate.Ecancermedicalscience · 2016
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors at 6 institutions in 2 countries.

Isabel PinhelAcademic Department of Biochemistry, The Royal Marsden Hospital, Fulham Road, London, SW3 6JJ, UK.
Margaret Hills
Suzanne Drury
Janine Salter
Georges Sumo
Roger A'Hern
Judith M Bliss
Ivana Sestak
Jack Cuzick
Peter Barrett-Lee
Adrian Harris
Mitch Dowsett
NCRI Adjuvant Breast Cancer Trial Management Group
Institute of Cancer Research · GBRoyal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust · GBQueen Mary University of London · GBBreast Cancer Research Foundation · USCardiff University · GBJohn Radcliffe Hospital · GB

Funding

Breast Cancer Now BREAST CANCER NOW RESEARCH CENTRECancer Research UK 9562Cancer Research UK C150/A3392Cancer Research UK C150/A6091Cancer Research UK C569/A10404Cancer Research UK CRUK/00/003Department of Health NF-SI-0611-10163Medical Research Council G9437812
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionEstrogen receptor-α (ER) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) positivity are inversely correlated by standard criteria. However, we investigated the quantitative relation between ER and HER2 expression at both RNA and protein levels in HER2+ve and HER2-ve breast carcinomas.

methodsER and HER2 levels were assessed with immunohistochemistry (IHC) and (for HER2) fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) and by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (q-RT-PCR) in formalin-fixed primary breast cancers from 448 patients in the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Adjuvant Breast Cancer Trial (ABC) tamoxifen-only arm. Relations at the RNA level were assessed in 1,139 TransATAC tumors.

resultsER and HER2 RNA levels were negatively correlated as expected in HER2+ve (IHC 3+ and/or FISH-amplified) tumors (r = -0.45; P = 0.0028). However, in HER2-ve tumors (ER+ve and ER-ve combined), a significant positive correlation was found (r = 0.43; P < 0.0001), HER2 RNA levels being 1.74-fold higher in ER+ve versus ER-ve tumors. This correlation was maintained in the ER+veHER2-ve subgroup (r = 0.24; P = 0.0023) and confirmed in this subgroup in 1,139 TransATAC tumours (r = 0.25; P < 0.0001). The positive relation extended to IHC-detected ER in ABC: mean ± 95% confidence interval (CI) H-scores were 90 ± 19 and 134 ± 19 for 0 and 1+ HER2 IHC categories, respectively (P = 0.0013). A trend toward lower relapse-free survival (RFS) was observed in patients with the lowest levels of ER and HER2 RNA levels within the ER+veHER2-ve subgroup both for ABC and TransATAC cohorts.

conclusionsER and HER2 expression is positively correlated in HER2-ve tumors. The distinction between HER2+ve and HER2-ve is greater in ER-ve than in ER+ve tumors. These findings are important to consider in clinical trials of anti-HER2 and anti-endocrine therapy in HER2-ve disease.

trial registrationClinical trial identifier: ISRCTN31514446.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsErb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine KinasesFemaleGene Expression Regulation, NeoplasticHumansKaplan-Meier EstimatePredictive Value of TestsPrognosisReceptors, EstrogenTamoxifenERBB2 protein, humanErb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine KinasesReceptors, EstrogenTamoxifen

Identifiers

PMID22417870
PMCPMC3446380
OpenAlexW1988209915

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.