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. 2018 Jan 18;9(10):9262-9272.
doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.24265. eCollection 2018 Feb 6.

Prognostic implications of HER2 heterogeneity in gastric cancer

Shigenobu Motoshima  1   2 , Koji Yonemoto  3 , Hideki Kamei  4 , Michi Morita  5 , Rin Yamaguchi  6
Affiliations

Prognostic implications of HER2 heterogeneity in gastric cancer

Shigenobu Motoshima et al. Oncotarget. .

Abstract

The prognostic implications of human epidermal growth receptor 2 (HER2) heterogeneity in gastric cancer (GC) are not well established. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to determine to the effect of HER2 status on the prognosis of GC patients. We retrieved data on 248 pathologically-confirmed, consecutive patients with primary adenocarcinoma of the stomach or gastro-esophageal junction who underwent surgical resection at Kurume University Medical Center between July 2000 and December 2012. HER2 status was classified as HER2 positive or negative and HER2 heterogeneity or homogeneity. The endpoint was overall survival (OS), which was compared using the generalized Wilcoxon test. HER2 status was positive in 36 patients (14.5%) and negative in 212 patients (85.5%). Among the 36 HER2 positive patients, 25 patients (69.4%) had HER2 heterogeneity and the remaining 11 patients (30.6%) had HER2 homogeneity. Among the 141 patients with stage III or IV disease, the prognosis of the HER2 homogeneity group was significantly worse than that of the HER2 heterogeneity group (p = 0.019; median OS 193 and 831 days, respectively). The prognosis was not significantly different between the HER2 positive group and the HER2 negative group (p = 0.84; median OS 552 and 556 days, respectively). The present study was conducted with small samples, however, the results of the study suggest that HER2 homogeneity but not HER2 positivity may represent a prognostic indicator in GC.

Keywords: HER2; gastric cancer; intratumoral heterogeneity; prognosis; trastuzumab.

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Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Kaplan–Meier overall survival curves for patients with stage III and IV disease in the HER2 heterogeneity and HER2 homogeneity groups
The prognosis of the HER2 homogeneity group was significantly worse than that of the HER2 heterogeneity group (p = 0.019; n = 9 and n = 16, respectively; median OS 193 and 831 days, respectively) using the generalized Wilcoxon test.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Kaplan–Meier overall survival curves for patients with stage III and IV disease in the HER2 positive and the HER2 negative groups
The prognosis was not significantly different between the HER2 positive group and the HER2 negative group (p = 0.84; n = 25 and n = 116, respectively; median OS 552 and 556 days, respectively) using the generalized Wilcoxon test.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Classification of HER2 status
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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