Expression analysis of human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2 transcripts in breast cancer cohort and its association with clinical features

Aim of Study: Increased expression of human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2 (HER2) is significantly associated with poor prognosis in breast cancer patients. However, data on HER2 at transcript levels in Pakistani mammary tumor affected females is still limited. In the current study, HER2 transcripts were explored in breast cancer cohort and correlated with various clinical parameters. Materials and Methods: Freshly excised tumors along with adjacent normal background tissues of 94 patients were collected at the time of surgery and immediately stored in RNAlater ® solution. Clinical data for these samples (disease stage, grade, age, and menopausal status) was also retrieved after a subsequent follow-up. Isolation of RNA and cDNA synthesis was done using an already established protocol. HER2 expression was evaluated using the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) technique while β-actin was used as an internal control. Results: In the given cohort, 31 (33%) patients were found positive for HER2. These tumors showed a pronounced increase in HER2 as compared to controls ( P = 0.0004). Interestingly, the significant relevance of high HER2 mRNA among moderately differentiated tumor tissues in comparison to controls was also observed ( P = 0.02). A significant association of HER2 levels with premenopausal status was also reported. Conclusion: Based on these findings, early screening of HER2 using qRT-PCR should be incorporated for breast cancer patients of Pakistani population diagnosis.