Comparison of the metastasis-inducing protein S100A4 (p9ka) with other prognostic markers in human breast cancer

Our aim was to compare the occurrence and prognostic significance over 14-20 years of immunocytochemically detected S100A4 and other tumour variables in primary tumours from 349 patients with operable breast cancer. For a cut-off of 1% staining of the malignant cells, the antibody to S100A4 stains positively 56% of the carcinomas. There was a significant association of staining for S100A4 with tumours fixed to the chest wall, staining for c-erbB-2, c-erbB-3, pS2, cathepsin D and, inversely, at borderline levels with staining for estrogen receptor. Using Wilcoxon statistics in univariate analyses, staining for S100A4, nodal status, tumour class, histological grade and staining for c-erbB-2, p53 were associated negatively and staining for estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor were associated positively with patient survival times. The survival times of patients with S100A4-negative carcinomas with or without one of the other tumour variables showed no significant differences, whilst those of patients with S100A4-positive carcinomas showed significant differences in a negative or a positive way. Multivariate regression analysis for 137 patients showed that staining for S100A4 is most highly correlated with patient deaths, but involved lymph nodes, fixed tumours, high histological grade and staining for progesterone receptor were also significant independent prognostic variables. Our results suggest that in this set of patients, the tumour variable most tightly correlated with patient death is S100A4.