Epidermal growth factor receptor copy number in potentially malignant oral disorders and oral squamous cell carcinoma: a short communication and preliminary study.

Introduction: This preliminary study compared the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) copy number in patients with potentially malignant oral disorders (PMODs) and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC).

Material And Methods: Group 1 comprised 20 patients with oral leukoplakia and group 2 comprised 19 cases of OSCC. We estimated the EGFR copy number in both groups using real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction assays. We used laser microdissection (LMD) for EGFR amplification, and overexpression was performed.

Results:   The EGFR copy number was higher in group 2 (9.1 ± 6.2) than in group 1 (3.8 ± 1.5). The greatest copy number was found in the non-homogeneous leukoplakias, but the difference in homogeneous cases was not significant (Mann-Whitney test, P>0.05). In group 2, the EGFR copy number was higher in advanced stages than in early stages, but again lacked statistical significance.

Conclusions: The EGFR copy number may be a useful biomolecular marker to differentiate PMODs from OSCC. The EGFR was higher in non-homogeneous leukoplakias and in the advanced stages of OSCC.