The expression of DCC protein in female breast cancer

Background. The deleted in colorectal cancer (DCC) gene has been shown to be frequently deleted or its expression reduced or absent in glioblastomas, colorectal, gastro-intestinal, pancreatic and prostatic tumors. In the present study, we investigated the expression of DCC in surgical specimen from 75 patients with primary breast cancer. Methods. The expression of the DCC, estrogen receptors (ER), and progesterone receptors (PR) was studied in 75 surgical specimens of primary breast cancer using an immunohistochemical method. To evaluate the outcomes of the breast cancer patients, we followed up the patients during minimum of 10 years. Results. Reduced or loss of expression of DCC was identified in 45 out of 75 samples. There were significant differences between cases without metastasis or local recurrences versus these with metastasis or local recurrences (p=0.006), and between patients alive with no evidence of malignancy versus those with recurrence or dead of disease (p=0.005). There were no significant differences between the DCC status and age, sex, tumor location, stage, grade, or proportion of patients who received adjuvant therapy. Conclusions. These findings suggest that a decrease in DCC expression may influence the prognosis of breast carcinoma patients.