Detection of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule in the serum of breast cancer patients and implications for prognosis.

OBJECTIVE: Conflicting results have been reported about activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM) expression in breast cancer and its prognostic value. Little is known about the role of ALCAM levels in the serum of breast cancer patients. METHODS: We analyzed soluble ALCAM (sALCAM) levels in the serum of 157 primary breast cancer patients and 48 healthy women by ELISA. In addition, we determined ALCAM protein expression by Western blot analysis (n = 120) and mRNA expression by cDNA microarray analysis (n = 115) in the tumor tissue of corresponding patients. RESULTS: sALCAM levels differed between patients and healthy controls (median 24.2 vs. 18.9 ng/ml, p < 0.001). We observed no correlation between serum levels and protein or mRNA expression in corresponding tumors (r < 0.1, p = n.s.). sALCAM levels were not correlated with histological type, grading, tumor stage, or patient age, but elevated sALCAM levels were associated with shorter disease-free survival (HR = 1.97, 95% CI 1.01-3.2, p = 0.043). CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that sALCAM can be detected in the serum of patients with primary breast cancer. Elevated serum levels might indicate more aggressive tumor behavior as they might be an independent factor for a worse prognosis in breast cancer patients.

Relevance of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM) in tumor tissue and sera of cervical cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: An altered expression of the activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM) is associated with cancer progression in various cancer types. In some cancers ALCAM has a prognostic value or is predictive for the benefit of therapeutic interventions. To date there are no data on the role of ALCAM in cervical cancer available. METHODS: In this study, ALCAM expression was analysed by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in tissue samples of 233 patients with cervical cancer, among them 178 with complete follow-up information. In addition, soluble (s-)ALCAM was measured in sera of a subset of the included patients (n = 55) by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: ALCAM overexpression was detected (immunoreactive score (IRS) 2-12) in 58.4% of the cervical cancer samples. The normal ectocervical or endocervical epithelium showed no ALCAM reactivity. In untreated patients, ALCAM overexpression in tumor tissue tended to be associated with shorter cancer-specific survival (CSS) and disease-free survival (DFS). Patients, whose tumor samples showed ALCAM overexpression receiving a cytotoxic therapy like radiotherapy or chemoradiation, however, had a favourable prognosis compared to those patients, whose cancers showed no or minimal ALCAM staining. This effect was particularly apparent in patients receiving chemoradiation where the CSS was significantly longer in patients with ALCAM-positive tumors (p = 0.038; cumulative incidence rates at 96 months 8%, 95% CI 0%-23%, and 26%, CI 3%-43% in ALCAM-positive and ALCAM-negative cases, respectively).Median preoperative s-ALCAM concentration in sera from tumor patients was 27.6 ng/ml (range 17.5-55.1 ng/ml, mean 28.9 ng/ml), serum levels did not correlate with intratumoral ALCAM expression. CONCLUSIONS: The data of our retrospective study suggest that the prognostic value of ALCAM expression in cervical carcinoma might be therapy-dependent, and that ALCAM might function as a predictive marker for the response to chemoradiation. This should be confirmed in further, prospective studies.

Biologic role of activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule overexpression in breast cancer cell lines and clinical tumor tissue.

The activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM) is overexpressed in many mammary tumors, but controversial results about its role and prognostic impact in breast cancer have been reported. Therefore, we evaluated the biologic effects of ALCAM expression in two breast cancer cell lines and a larger cohort of mammary carcinomas. By stable transfections, MCF7 cells with ALCAM overexpression and MDA-MB231 cells with reduced ALCAM levels were generated and analyzed in functional assays and cDNA microarrays. In addition, an immunohistochemical study on 347 patients with breast cancer with long-term follow-up and analysis of disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) was performed. In both cell lines, high ALCAM expression was associated with reduced cell motility. In addition, ALCAM silencing in MDA-MB231 cells resulted in lower invasive potential, whereas high ALCAM expression was associated with increased apoptosis in both cell lines. Among genes which were differentially expressed in clones with altered ALCAM expression, there was an overlap of 15 genes between both cell lines, among them cathepsin D, keratin 7, gelsolin, and ets2 whose deregulation was validated by western blot analysis. In MDA-MB231 cells, we observed a correlation with VEGF expression which was validated by enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay (ELISA). Our IHC results on primary breast carcinomas showed that ALCAM expression was associated with an estrogen receptor-positive phenotype. In addition, strong ALCAM immunostaining correlated with nodal involvement and the presence of tumor cells in bone marrow. By Kaplan-Meier analysis, strong ALCAM expression in ductal carcinomas correlated with shorter recurrence-free intervals (P=0.048) and overall survival (OAS, P=0.003). Our results indicate that the biologic role of ALCAM in breast cancer is complex, but overexpression might be relevant for outcome in ductal carcinomas.

Prognostic value of pathological resection margin distance in squamous cell cancer of the vulva.

BACKGROUND: A tumor-free resection margin of at least 8 mm is considered state of the art in vulvar cancer. This standard is based on small and heterogeneous patient cohorts, and its implementation can result in mutilation. METHODS: One hundred two consecutive patients with primary squamous cell vulvar cancer were analyzed. All patients received resection of the primary tumor and the inguinofemoral lymph nodes via three separate incisions, resulting in complete tumor resection. Median follow-up was 31 months. Minimal margin distances were pathologically determined in all dimensions after fixation. RESULTS: Median age of the patients was 62 years; 38.2% had International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage I, 17.6% stage II, 24.4% stage III, and 8.8% stage IV disease. The median minimal resection margin was 5 mm (range 0.5-25 mm). Sixteen patients (15.6%) developed disease recurrence, of whom 10 (62.5%) at the vulva. Margin distance had no significant impact on disease-free survival when analyzed continuously (p = 0.388). When cases were divided into three subgroups of <3 mm (28.4%), ≥3 to <8 mm (42.2%), and ≥8 mm (29.4%) resection margin, neither univariate nor multivariate analysis revealed a difference in disease-free survival. There was no significant difference between any of the subgroups regarding tumor stages and adjuvant radiotherapy of the vulva. These results were independent of the direction of the minimal margin distance and consistent when only vulvar recurrences were analyzed. CONCLUSIONS: A tumor-free resection margin is essential for locoregional control in vulvar cancer. However, in this large, single-center study, we could not demonstrate any prognostic impact of pathological margin distance.

Carbonic anhydrase IX in tumor tissue and sera of patients with primary cervical cancer.

BACKGROUND: Carbonic anhydrase IX (CAIX) is a membranous expressed metalloenzyme involved in pH homeostasis and cell adhesion. The protein is overexpressed in a variety of tumors and potentially associated with negative outcome. This study was designed to investigate the prognostic role of CAIX in serum and tumor tissue of patients with primary cervical cancer. METHODS: Tumor samples of 221 consecutive patients with primary cervical cancer who underwent surgery between 1993 and 2008 were analyzed for CAIX expression by immunohistochemistry. Additionally, preoperative serum CAIX concentrations were determined by ELISA in a subset of patients. Correlation with intratumoral CAIX expression as well as clinicopathological factors and outcome was analyzed. RESULTS: CAIX expression was observed in 81.9% of the tumor specimens; 62.0% showed a moderate or strong staining intensity. Moderate/strong expression was associated with squamous histology (p=0.024), advanced tumor stage (p=0.001), greater invasion depth (p=0.025), undifferentiated tumor grade (p<0.001) and high preoperative SCC-Ag values (p=0.042). Furthermore patients with moderate/strong intratumoral CAIX expression had a higher number of metastatic lymph nodes compared to those with none/weak intratumoral expression levels (p=0.047) and there was a non-significant association between high intratumoral CAIX expression and shorter survival (p=0.118). Preoperative serum concentrations of CAIX ranged between 23 and 499 pg/mL and did not correlate with intratumoral expression or other clinicopathological variables. CONCLUSION: CAIX is associated with advanced tumor stages and lymph node metastases in cervical cancer, potentially representing a new target in this disease. In contrast to other epithelial cancers we could not observe a correlation between serum CAIX and its intratumoral expression.

Management of patients with brain metastases receiving trastuzumab treatment for metastatic breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: With the more effective control of visceral metastases in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC), an increasing number of patients face brain metastases (BM). The aim of this retrospective analysis was to investigate the incidence and factors affecting the prognosis of patients with BM under trastuzumab treatment for MBC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 75 HER2positive patients treated with trastuzumab for MBC were included. RESULTS are discussed in the context of the current literature. RESULTS: Patients who developed BM (n = 29) had longer median progression-free survival (PFS) during first-line chemotherapy and longer overall survival (OS) after diagnosis of MBC than 46 patients without BM (PFS: 27 vs. 14 months, p = 0.039; OS: 46 vs. 18 months, p = 0.067). Median survival of patients with continuation of trastuzumab after diagnosis of BM was longer than survival of patients with discontinuation of trastuzumab treatment after BM (18 vs. 3 months, p = 0.006). Survival of patients who were treated with surgery and radiotherapy for BM was better compared with radiotherapy alone (9 vs. 5 months, p = not significant) or best supportive care (9 vs. 2 months, p = 0.049). CONCLUSIONS: Continuation of trastuzumab treatment as well as resection of BM seem to give further benefit in the treatment of patients with HER2-overexpressing MBC.

Therapeutic potential of the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor rucaparib for the treatment of sporadic human ovarian cancer.

Here, we investigate the potential role of the PARP inhibitor rucaparib (CO-338, formerly known as AG014699 and PF-01367338) for the treatment of sporadic ovarian cancer. We studied the growth inhibitory effects of rucaparib in a panel of 39 ovarian cancer cell lines that were each characterized for mutation and methylation status of BRCA1/2, baseline gene expression signatures, copy number variations of selected genes, PTEN status, and sensitivity to platinum-based chemotherapy. To study interactions with chemotherapy, we used multiple drug effect analyses and assessed apoptosis, DNA fragmentation, and γH2AX formation. Concentration-dependent antiproliferative effects of rucaparib were seen in 26 of 39 (67%) cell lines and were not restricted to cell lines with BRCA1/2 mutations. Low expression of other genes involved in homologous repair (e.g., BCCIP, BRCC3, ATM, RAD51L1), amplification of AURKA or EMSY, and response to platinum-based chemotherapy was associated with sensitivity to rucaparib. Drug interactions with rucaparib were synergistic for topotecan, synergistic, or additive for carboplatin, doxorubicin or paclitaxel, and additive for gemcitabine. Synergy was most pronounced when rucaparib was combined with topotecan, which resulted in enhanced apoptosis, DNA fragmentation, and γH2AX formation. Importantly, rucaparib potentiated chemotherapy independent of its activity as a single agent. PARP inhibition may be a useful therapeutic strategy for a wider range of ovarian cancers bearing deficiencies in the homologous recombination pathway other than just BRCA1/2 mutations. These results support further clinical evaluation of rucaparib either as a single agent or as an adjunct to chemotherapy for the treatment of sporadic ovarian cancer.

Protein expression analysis of ALCAM and CEACAM6 in breast cancer metastases reveals significantly increased ALCAM expression in metastases of the skin.

AIMS: For prediction and understanding of underlying mechanisms of organ-specific metastases, various gene and protein expression signatures have been identified in primary breast carcinomas. These expression signatures often include several genes coding for adhesion molecules, such as activated leucocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM/CD166) and carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 6 (CEACAM6), both of which may play an important role in the development of distant metastases because of their adherent properties. Owing to their predominantly membranous localisation, they are also considered to have certain therapeutic potential. Apart from expression data obtained in the primary tumour, data for gene and protein expression patterns in distant breast cancer metastases are rare. Therefore this study focuses on analysing the distribution of ALCAM and CEACAM6 protein expression in breast cancer metastases from different sites. METHODS: Immunohistochemical staining for ALCAM and CEACAM6 in 117 breast cancer metastases derived from liver (n=24), lung (n=19), brain (n=21), bone (n=36) and skin (n=17) was performed. RESULTS: Immunoreactive scores (IRS) for ALCAM in all metastases except skin metastases ranged from 2.63 to 5.10 (membranous) and 2.79 to 3.67 (cytoplasmic), showing a positive correlation with each other (r=0.690, p<0.001). In skin metastases, ALCAM expression was significantly stronger (membranous IRS, 8.76; cytoplasmic IRS, 7.12; p<0.001). Mean staining intensity for CEACAM6 was IRS 3.88. No or weak CEACAM6 and ALCAM staining (IRS 0-3) was seen in 53% vs 27% of all metastases. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with CEACAM6, ALCAM showed significantly stronger protein expression in breast cancer skin metastases compared with metastases in all other sites.

Comparison of microarray-based RNA expression with ELISA-based protein determination of HER2, uPA and PAI-1 in tumour tissue of patients with breast cancer and relation to outcome.

PURPOSE: Prognostic and predictive markers in breast cancer are currently determined by single analysis of protein amounts. If RNA-based multi-gene analyses enter clinical practice, simultaneous determination of currently established markers like human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) and its inhibitor (PAI-1) would represent an elegant simplification. To investigate the correlation between RNA and protein levels, we assessed HER2, uPA and PAI-1 in patients with breast cancer. In addition, we evaluated the influence of these factors on patient outcome. METHODS: We collected tumour samples from 133 patients with primary breast cancer. Protein and mRNA levels were measured for HER2, uPA and PAI-1. Protein concentration was measured by ELISA, mRNA expression was analysed by Affymetrix A133U Gene Chip and validated by quantitative PCR. RESULTS: We were able to demonstrate a statistically significant correlation between mRNA and protein expression for HER2 (r = 0.67, P < 0.001) and uPA (r = 0.7, P < 0.001) but not for PAI-1 (r = 0.27). We observed a prognostic information for PAI-1 mRNA and protein values. Patients with high PAI-1 mRNA expression had a reduced 10-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate (60 vs. 70%, P = 0.071) and 10-year overall survival (OS) rate (68 vs. 79%, P = 0.034). Patients with PAI-1 protein levels above 14 ng/mg protein had a reduced disease-free (10-year DFS rate 54 vs. 71%, P = 0.006) and overall survival rate (10-year OS-rate 63 vs. 83%, P = 0.018). In the patient cohort with no chemotherapy, PAI-1 mRNA levels were the strongest prognostic factor for OS in univariate and multivariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Results of RNA-based multi-gene analyses of the prognostic and predictive markers HER2 and uPA correlate with the corresponding protein levels. This is not the case for PAI-1. However, PAI-1 mRNA expression might reveal new clinically relevant information in addition to PAI protein levels.

Prognostic significance of CA-125 in the management of patients with recurrent epithelial ovarian carcinoma selected for secondary cytoreduction.

BACKGROUND: Despite radical surgical and chemotherapeutic treatment of ovarian cancer, the majority of patients develop recurrence and die due to progressive disease. Routine measurement of the tumor marker CA-125 is often used in the follow-up management. However, the role of preoperative CA-125 as a prognostic factor before secondary cytoreduction of relapsed ovarian cancer has not been determined. PATIENTS AND METHODS: CA-125 serum concentration and relevant clinico-pathological variables were analyzed regarding their potential prognostic impact in patients selected for secondary cytoreduction of recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer. RESULTS: In total, 48 patients underwent secondary cytoreduction at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf between 1996 and 2004 and 36 patients were evaluable for serum CA-125 concentration. Median age was 60 years (range 30-78 years) and median relapse-free survival before secondary cytoreduction was 18 months. The median time to progression after secondary surgery was 22 months (range 1-100 months), and median overall survival was 26 months (range 1-100 months). Serum CA-125 at the time of secondary cytoreduction was elevated (>35 kU/L) in 30 of 36 patients (81%) with a median of 212 kU/L (range 6-3866 kU/L). Multivariate analysis did not reveal a prognostic significance for preoperative CA-125. The only independent prognostic factors of improved survival were progression-free interval before secondary cytoreduction (p=0.047) and minimal residual disease after secondary cytoreduction (p=0.024). CONCLUSION: Although most patients had elevated serum CA-125 at the time of secondary cytoreductive surgery, CA-125 had no prognostic relevance.