Do erythropoietin receptors on cancer cells explain unexpected clinical findings?

Purpose: Recent reports suggest that cancer control may worsen if erythropoietin is administered. We investigated whether erythropoietin receptor expression on cancer cells may correlate with this unexpected finding.

Patients And Methods: Cancer tissue from patients with advanced carcinoma of the head and neck (T3, T4, or nodal involvement) and scheduled for radiotherapy was assayed retrospectively for erythropoietin receptor expression by immunohistochemistry.