High Nuclear Expression of CXCR4 Is Associated with Metastases and Decreased Survival in Hormone Sensitive Breast Cancer.

Introduction: CXCR4 chemokine receptor and its specific ligand SDF-1alpha are thought to play an important role in breast cancer metastases. High levels of SDF-1alpha in the common destination organs of metastasis are thought to attract CXCR4-positive tumour cells.Aim: The aim of the study was to test whether CXCR4 expression in the primary tumour can indicate breast cancer with high likelihood of metastasising.Methods: Tissue slides were prepared from the paraffin embedded primary tumours of breast cancer patients. CXCR4 expression was detected using immunohistochemistry assessed by a pathologist. Disseminated tumour cells (DTC9s) were detected in the bone marrow samples of patients taken at the time of surgery using anti-HEA/FITC-conjugated antibody and flow cytometry. All other clinicopathological features of the patients were also compiled.Results: CXCR4 expression was assessed in one hundred and ten patients. They had a mean age of 57.18 years and a median follow up of 84 months (range 4 – 108). 72.6% of patients had a T2 or a T3 tumour. The majority were hormone sensitive, 80.9% and Her2/neu negative, 76.1%. Disseminated tumour cells were found in the majority of patients, 85.5%, but 57.2% had greater that 1000 DTC9s/100,000. There was no correlation found between cytoplasmic staining for CXCR4 and the clinicopathological features of the tumours including DTC9s. High nuclear staining was associated significantly with decreased overall and disease free survival, p Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(24 Suppl):Abstract nr 3037.