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Cytogenetic differences in breast cancer samples between German and Japanese patients

¹ Institute of Pathology, 49076 Osnabrück, Germany
² Department of Epidemiology, Saitama Cancer Centre, Saitama 362-0806 Japan
³ Institute of Pathology, University of Muenster, 48149 Muenster, Germany
⁴ Institute of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, University of Muenster

Correspondence to:
Professor H Buerger
Institute of Pathology, Westfälische Wilhelmsuniversität Münster, Domagkstr. 173, 48149 Münster, Germany; burgerh{at}uni-muenster.de
ABSTRACT
Background: Japanese and German breast cancer cases differ substantially in the frequency of egfr amplification.

Aims: To unravel further the cytogenetic differences between Japanese and German breast cancer cases.

Methods: Forty one Japanese breast cancer cases were evaluated by means of comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH). The results were compared with the CGH results from 161 German breast cancer cases.

Results: The mean number of genetic alterations/case was significantly higher in German premenopausal patients with breast cancer than in their Japanese counterparts. Japanese breast cancer cases revealed a higher number of chromosome 17p losses. Losses of 8p were associated with oestrogen receptor (ER) negativity in Japanese patients with breast cancer, whereas in the German patients gains of 3q and 6q were associated with the lack of ER expression.

Conclusions: The interethnic differences of invasive breast cancer are reflected by cytogenetic aberrations, which are also associated with the differential expression of the ER.

Abbreviations: CGH, comparative genomic hybridisation; EGFR, epidermal growth factor receptor; ER, oestrogen receptor

Keywords: breast cancer; cytogenetic; epidemiology; interethnic