c‐erbB‐2 proto‐oncogene expression and its relationship to survival in gastric carcinoma: An immunohistochemical study on archival material

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Abstract
The c‐erbB‐2 proto‐oncogene encodes a growth factor receptor which is over‐expressed in a variety of human adenocarcinomas. Recent reports suggest that it may be of value in arriving at prognosis in breast and ovarian cancer. In this study, c‐erbB‐2 expression was investigated in 93 routinely processed cases of gastric carcinoma, using an immunohisto‐chemical technique. c‐erbB‐2 membrane immunoreactivity was observed in 11% (10/93) of tumours, all of whkh were of the well differentiated intestinal type (p< 0.01). Overall, patients with tumours expressing this proto‐oncogene had a significantly improved prognosis (p< 0.05). Within the group of intestinal‐type tumours, those that were c‐erbB‐2‐positive formed a distinct sub‐population which had a better prognosis (p< 0.02), suggesting possible differences in aetiology.