Expression of sex steroid receptor subtypes in normal and malignant breast tissue – a pilot study in postmenopausal women

Abstract

Female sex steroids are implied in breast cancer development. The estrogen (ER) and progesterone (PR) receptor subtypes may have different roles to modulate the cellular response. Paired samples of cancer and adjacent normal tissue were collected from postmenopausal women at surgery for ductal breast cancer. The expression of ERα, ERß, PRA and PRB was quantified by immunostaining and digitized image analysis. We found ERß to be significantly reduced in breast cancer tissue (35% vs 50%; p = 0.001) and there was also a decrease of the ERß/ERα ratio. Among women using hormones at the time of diagnosis tumor tissue showed higher values for both PRB and PRA, as compared to women without such treatment. The results extend previous animal data to be valid also in women. There is evidence that loss of ERß expression may relate to estrogen dependent tumor progression. Increased PR expression could possibly relate to breast cancer risk during combined estrogen/progestogen treatment.