An Immunohistochemical Study in Urothelial Carcinoma of HER2/neu in Iraqi Patients

Abstract Background: Bladder carcinoma is a common urological cancer. The most common type of bladder carcinoma in the United States is urothelial carcinoma (TCC).HER-2\neu proteins seems to include in pathogenesis of urothelial carcinoma. Its over expression has been associated with advanced stage of transitional cell carcinoma of bladder,this association has incited trials to HER2/neu targeted therapies in advanced diseases. Objectives: The aim of the current study was to evaluate the HER2 expression in UCB and its association with clinical and pathological factors. Materials and Methods: 50 cases with transitional cell carcinoma (13 female,37 male), were included in this study. Their ages ranged from 23 to 89 years,. A group of 20 cases with benign bladder lesions (cystitis) was included as control group. Avidin-Biotin Complex (ABC) method was employed for immunohistochemical detection of HER-2\neu. Results: HER-2\neu over expression was found in 42% of transitional cell carcinoma, and no expression in benign bladder lesions (cystitis) was detected, (P value <0.05). HER-2\neu over expression was high in invasive lesions with stages (≥T2) than in non-invasive stages (≤T1) ( P < 0.05). HER-2\neu over expression were well correlated to gender (P value<0.05) and age of patients (P value <0.05). Conclusions and Recommendations: From these findings we can conclude that HER-2\neu plays an important role in pathogenesis of transitional cell cancer evolution. This may support the evidence of its role in increased or uncontrolled proliferation of the malignant cells.