[Expression of epidermal growth factor receptor in salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma and its role in cancer invasion].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) status in salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma and explore its role in cancer invasion. METHODS: Fifty-four patients with pathologically confirmed salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (SACC) were divided into invasion group and non-invasion group. The EGFR expression was determined by immunohistochemstry (SP staining). The relations between the EGFR expression and the SACC clinical pathological characteristics were analyzed. RESULTS: EGFR were mainly expressed in the cell membrane and cytoplasm in the tissue of SACC. The positive rate of EGFR expression in the tumor tissue was 75.9% (41/54), and EGFR was over-expressed in the cytoplasm. The positive rate of EGFR expression in invasion group was higher than that in the non-invasion group (10.0%, P < 0.05). EGFR expression were related with the SACC T stages, histological types, distant metastasis, lymph node metastasis, and nerve invasion (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: A higher expression of EGFR gene in the cytoplasm may have important effect on the progression of invasive carcinoma. Further investigations are required to develop new strategy in the treatment of salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma.