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. 2006 Mar;7(5):332-7.
doi: 10.3816/clc.2006.n.015.

Sex differences in the predictive power of the molecular prognostic factor HER2/neu in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer

Daniel Vallböhmer  1 , Jan Brabender, Dong Yun Yang, Kathleen Danenberg, Paul M Schneider, Ralf Metzger, Arnulf H Holscher, Peter V Danenberg
Affiliations

Sex differences in the predictive power of the molecular prognostic factor HER2/neu in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer

Daniel Vallböhmer et al. Clin Lung Cancer. 2006 Mar.

Abstract

Background: Recent studies imply that HER2/neu is a potential prognostic factor in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Whereas considerable evidence indicates sex differences in epidemiologic, hormonal, biologic, and genetic factors in this disease, it has remained unknown whether HER2/neu has a diverse function as a prognostic factor in men and women.

Patients and methods: We investigated the association between gene expression levels of HER2/neu in the primary tumors of 90 patients with curable resected NSCLC and survival, especially analyzing whether there is a different potential of this molecular factor in its prognostic impact between men and women.

Results: High HER2/neu gene expression levels were found in 62 patients (68.9%), and low HER2/neu gene expression levels were found in 28 patients (31.1%). High HER2/neu messenger RNA expression levels were associated with inferior survival (P = 0.09) compared with lower HER2/neu expression. Survival analysis was then carried out separately for men and women in this group of patients. An HER2/neu gene expression cutoff point was identified that separated women, but not men, into good and poor prognostic groups.

Conclusion: These findings suggest that HER2/neu as a prognostic factor is strongly sex specific, indicating that it is not useful for men but highly predictive for women.

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