Psoriasin (S100A7) expression is associated with poor outcome in estrogen receptor-negative invasive breast cancer.

PURPOSE: Psoriasin (S100A7) is highly expressed in preinvasive ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast and persistent expression occurs in some invasive carcinomas. This study explores the clinical significance of psoriasin in relation to patient survival in invasive breast cancer.

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: We examined psoriasin expression by immunohistochemistry in a cohort of 122 estrogen receptor-negative invasive ductal carcinomas.

RESULTS: Psoriasin expression was observed in 64 of 122 cases (52%) but was not correlated with other prognostic factors (including progesterone receptor, stage, size, grade, and nodal status) within this cohort. However, in univariate analysis, psoriasin expression (nuclear and cytoplasmic) was associated with a shorter time to progression (P < 0.04) and poor survival (P < 0.03). In multivariate analysis, cytoplasmic psoriasin also emerged as independent indicator of time to progression (hazard ratio, 1.86; 95% confidence interval, 1.02-3.39; P = 0.044) and survival (hazard ratio, 2.12; 95% confidence interval, 1.06-4.23; P = 0.033).

CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that psoriasin expression may be associated with a worse prognosis in estrogen receptor-negative invasive ductal carcinomas and raise the possibility that psoriasin expression may also be an indicator of risk of progression in ductal carcinoma in situ.