Article Text
Abstract
Introduction Under the influence of their receptors, progesterone is well known for its antagonistic effects to estrogen, which promotes tumor cell proliferation. The roles of estrogen and progesterone are less clear in ovarian cancer than in other hormone-dependent cancers such as breast or endometrial tumors. Our objective was to evaluate immunopositivity for progesterone (PR) and estrogen receptors (ER) in patients with high-grade epithelial ovarian cancer (HGEOC).
Methods Between January 2018 and November 2023, we conducted a retrospective study of 104 patients with HGEOC at the University Hospital of Liège. Hormone receptors expression was detected by immunohistochemistry on biopsies and/or surgical specimens. A positivity threshold was set at 10% of positive tumor cells. The median follow-up was 25.1 months. The impact of ER and PR expression on OS and PFS was evaluated by univariate COX regression models.
Results Our study reports that 91.0%, 34.1% and 32.6% of HGEOC were ER-positive, PR-positive and positive for both receptors, respectively. ER expression <10% is associated with a statistically significant higher risk of death and relapse: OS (HR: 8.00; [95% CI: 2.48-25.6]; p=0.0005) and PFS (HR: 5.88; [95% CI: 3.55-18.2]; p=0.0022). PR expression <10% has no impact on OS and PFS. The association of ER and PR was analyzed by distinguishing 4 groups (ER+/PR+; ER+/PR-; ER-/PR+; ER-/PR-). Positive ER has higher OS (p=0.0052) and PFS (p=0.016) regardless of PR status.
Conclusion/Implications The absence of ER expression in HGEOC is associated with a poorer prognosis. These findings need further explorations.