EGFR mutation and E-cadherin prognosis gefitinib

liver (34), pancreas (35) and urinary bladder (36,37). Moreover, in NSCLCs, a positive E-cadherin expression associates with a more differentiated histology (26,28) and a better prognosis (25,27,28). The latter mechanism is supported by reports showing that E-cadherin interacts with EGF R,thereby decreasing ligand-affinity (38,39) and inhibiting activation (40) in several human tumor types including the esophageal, breast and lung (41-43). Mechanisms i) and ii) stated above are not mutually exclusive and both may contribute to a better prognosis.

F igure 1. Immunohistochemistry. Positive (A) and negative (B) staining for p-EGF R; positive (C) and negative (D) staining for p-Akt; positive (E) and negative (F) staining for E-cadherin; magnification, x200.

Table III. EGFR mutation and staining of p-EGFR, p-Akt and E-cadherin.

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p-EGFR p-Akt E-cadherin

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Positive Negative Positive Negative Positive Negative –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––All patients321321195 EGFR mutation

Positive283791 Negative113014104

P0.35<0.050.27

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––EGFR, epidermal growth factor receptor; p-EGFR, phosphorylated-EGFR; p-Akt, phosphorylated-Akt.

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