Improved survival in p16-positive vaginal cancers across all tumor stages but no correlation with MIB-1.

Objectives: Survival as it relates to p16 overexpression and MIB-1 (Ki-67) proliferation in primary squamous cell vaginal carcinoma was studied.

Methods: Retrospective chart review from 1997 to 2006 revealed 43 patients who were treated for primary vaginal cancer at Emory University hospitals. Tissue was evaluated by immunohistochemical staining for the presence of p16 and MIB-1 markers, and survival data were examined.

Wnt signaling in triple negative breast cancer is associated with metastasis.

Background: Triple Negative subset of (TN) Breast Cancers (BC), a close associate of the basal-like subtype (with limited discordance) is an aggressive form of the disease which convey unpredictable, and poor prognosis due to limited treatment options and lack of proven effective targeted therapies.

Methods: We conducted an expression study of 240 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) primary biopsies from two cohorts, including 130 TN tumors, to identify molecular mechanisms of TN disease.

Results: The annotation of differentially expressed genes in TN tumors contained an overrepresentation of canonical Wnt signaling components in our cohort and others.

Age/race differences in HER2 testing and in incidence rates for breast cancer triple subtypes: a population-based study and first report.

Background: Although US year 2000 guidelines recommended characterizing breast cancers by human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), national cancer registries do not collect HER2, rendering a population-based understanding of HER2 and clinical "triple subtypes" (estrogen receptor [ER] / progesterone receptor [PR] / HER2) largely unknown. We document the population-based prevalence of HER2 testing / status, triple subtypes and present the first report of subtype incidence rates.

Methods: Medical records were searched for HER2 on 1842 metropolitan Atlanta females diagnosed with breast cancer during 2003-2004.