Expression of HER2/neu, MUC1, Estrogen, and Progesterone Receptors in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer: Implications for Targeted Therapy: A Descriptive Research

OpenAlex İngilizce

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the expression of HER2/neu, MUC1, and estrogen and progesterone receptors in malignant epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and determine their effects on clinical-pathological features and prognosis. Material and Methods: The study included 86 patients diagnosed with EOC. The histopathological types were high-grade serous carcinoma (HGSOC; n=46 patients), lowgrade serous carcinoma (LGSOC; n=7 patients), mucinous carcinoma (MC; n=14 patients), and clear cell carcinoma (CCC; n=19 patients). The patients'' demographic, clinical-pathological, and prognostic characteristics were reviewed retrospectively. The pathological separates of the patients were immunohistochemically applied with MUC1, HER2/neu, estrogen, and progesterone antibodies, and the expression status of these markers was analyzed for their relationship with clinical-pathological features and prognosis using statistical methods. Results: MUC1 was strongly positive in LGSC and CCC patients, with a lower frequency in MC and higher in HGSC (p<0.001). In 50% of MC cases, HER2/neu staining was strongly positive. In addition, 85.7% of LGSC cases had positive estrogen receptor (ER) (p=0.041) and progesterone receptor (PR) (p=0.029). All 16 patients in the HGSC group, who were resistant to platinum therapy, tested positive for ER staining. Additionally, 93.7% of these patients were highly positive for MUC1 staining. Conclusion: The study found that MUC1 was highly positively stained in the LGSC and CCC groups, platinum-resistant patients had high estrogen-PR expressions, and half of the MC group tested positive for HER2/neu. These results are important for targeted therapy in difficult-to-manage EOC.