TLE3 expression is associated with sensitivity to taxane treatment in ovarian carcinoma

Background: We have previously demonstrated that TLE3 is associated with outcome specifically in taxane-treated breast cancer patients and not in patients treated with anthracycline-based regimens without a taxane. The purpose of this study was to assess the association between TLE3 expression and recurrence in ovarian carcinoma patients treated with a taxane containing regimen as opposed to those treated with a platinum-based agent alone. Methods: We performed immunohistochemical staining of TLE3 in 2 series of ovarian cancer specimens from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA and the Royal Hospital for Women, Sydney, Australia. Local and distant recurrences within the first five years of follow-up were analyzed using Kaplan Meier, Cox proportional hazard and multivariate analysis to assess an association between TLE3 expression and response to therapy. Results: TLE3 was expressed in approximately 30% of tumors and expression was associated with a favorable outcome only in patients who had received taxane as part of their treatment regimen (n=173, HR=0.62, p=0.012; interaction p-value = 0.024). Further analysis revealed that the predictive association between TLE3 expression and outcome was strongest in patients with non-serous histology. Conclusions: High TLE3 expression predicts a favorable response to taxane containing chemotherapy regimens in ovarian carcinoma. Impact: Our findings warrant an independent evaluation of TLE3 as a potential therapeutic response marker for taxane-based chemotherapy in ovarian cancer.