Classification and risk stratification of invasive breast carcinomas using a real-time quantitative RT-PCR assay

2006

Classifying Breast Cancer with qRT-PCR

Sample size: 123 publication 10 minutes Evidence: high

Author Information

Author(s): Perreard Laurent, Fan Cheng, Quackenbush John F, Mullins Michael, Gauthier Nicholas P, Nelson Edward, Mone Mary, Hansen Heidi, Buys Saundra S, Rasmussen Karen, Orrico Alejandra Ruiz, Dreher Donna, Walters Rhonda, Parker Joel, Hu Zhiyuan, He Xiaping, Palazzo Juan P, Olopade Olufunmilayo I, Szabo Aniko, Perou Charles M, Bernard Philip S

Primary Institution: The ARUP Institute for Clinical and Experimental Pathology, SLC, Utah, USA

Hypothesis

Can a real-time quantitative RT-PCR assay effectively classify and risk-stratify invasive breast carcinomas based on biological subtypes and proliferation?

Conclusion

The qRT-PCR assay can accurately classify breast cancer subtypes and provide significant prognostic information based on proliferation.

Supporting Evidence

The qRT-PCR assay showed 93% concordance with microarray classifications.
High proliferation in Luminal subtype tumors conferred a 19-fold relative risk of relapse.
The proliferation meta-gene provided significant prognostic information for patients with Luminal tumors.

Takeaway

This study shows that a special test can help doctors understand different types of breast cancer and how likely they are to come back, which helps in deciding the best treatment.

Methodology

The study used microarray analysis and a qRT-PCR assay on 123 breast samples to classify tumors into four molecular subtypes and assess proliferation.