Molecular profiling of breast carcinoma with IHC surrogates in a tertiary care centre in South India

Abstract

Introduction and Aim: Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in females worldwide. Almost 1.4 million new cases have been diagnosed with breast cancer every year. This aims to study the clinicopathological profile and molecular subtypes of invasive breast carcinoma in resected mastectomy specimens over a period of 5 years. \nMaterials and Methods:A retrospective study of 90 mastectomy and wide local resection specimens received during the period of January 2012 to June 2017 were analyzed. The clinical data of patients including age, gender, and stage of the diseasewere obtained from the medical records section. Immunohistochemical staining for Estrogen Receptor [ER], Progesterone Receptor[PR] and Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2HER2neu were done.The cases were classified according to the molecular classification based on the ER, PR and HER2 receptor status. \nResults: The peak incidence of breast carcinoma was in the age group 50 to 60 years. Invasive ductal carcinoma,Not otherwise specified[NOS] accounted for the most common histologic type. There was higher incidence of pT2 tumors in our study. The most common molecular subtype was luminal A, followed by triple negative tumors. These molecular subtypes associated well with Tumor grade and HGDCIS with a statistically significant p value of 0.001 and 0.015 respectively. An increased proportion of Grade 3 tumors were Triple Negative tumors. \nConclusion:In breast carcinomas the routine histopathological features provide inexpensive method for understanding tumour biology and prognosis. It`s essential in areas with poor resources. ER, PR and HER2 assessment helps in identifying hormonal status and enables for hormone therapy and anti HER2 therapy.