Effect of Estrogen Receptor on the Relationship Between HER2 Immunohistochemistry Score and Pathological Complete Response to Neoadjuvant Treatment in HER2-Positive Breast Cancer

Sep 22, 2026

Investigation of HER2 immunohistochemistry (IHC) scoring in HER2-positive breast cancer evaluates how estrogen receptor (ER) status influences the predictive value for response to neoadjuvant therapy. A retrospective cohort of 167 patients undergoing neoadjuvant treatment and surgery was analyzed using uni- and multivariable logistic regression. Overall tpCR reached 41.32%, with higher tpCR/bpCR/apCR rates in HER2 IHC 3+ compared with IHC 2+. Subgroup results showed significant interactions with ER and PR status. ER-positive patients exhibited a marked decrease in response for IHC 2+.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages8

Reading Time20 min

AccessFree to download

Purpose

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Wiley The Breast Journal Volume 2024, Article ID 8851703, 8 pages [https://doi.org/10.1155/2024/8851703](https://doi.org/10.1155/2024/8851703) Research Article Effect of Estrogen Receptor on the Relationship Between HER2 Immunohistochemistry Score and Pathological Complete Response to Neoadjuvant Treatment in HER2-Positive Breast Cancer Miaomiao Jia , Haibo Yang , Lihui Pan , Jinnan Gao , and Fan Guo Department of Breast Surgery, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Shanxi Academy of Medical Sciences, Tongji Shanxi Hospital, Tird Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030032, China Correspondence should be addressed to Fan Guo; [guofanhe@163.com](guofanhe@163.com) Received 11 July 2023; Revised 4 April 2024; Accepted 23 September 2024 Academic Editor: Imtiaz Wani Copyright © 2024 Miaomiao Jia et al. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Purpose: We aimed to investigate whether estrogen receptor (ER) status afects the predictive role of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) immunohistochemistry (IHC) score on the efcacy of neoadjuvant treatment for HER2-positive breast cancer. Methods: Tis retrospective study comprised 167 individuals diagnosed with HER2-positive invasive breast cancer who had undergone neoadjuvant treatment and surgery. Uni- and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed on the relationship between the HER2 IHC score and total pathological complete response (tpCR), breast pathological complete response (bpCR), or axillary partial response (apCR) . Subgroup analyses were used to investigate whether the relationship between the HER2 IHC score and tpCR, bpCR, or apCR difered by ER or PR status. Results: Te overall tpCR rate for HER2-positive breast cancers treated with neoadjuvant treatment was 41.32%(69 of 167) . TetpCR, bpCR, and apCR rates were greater in the HER2 IHC 3+ group (tpCR: IHC 3 + 47.69% vs. IHC 2 + 18.92%, p 􀂈 0.009) . Signifcant interactions between HER2 IHC score andtpCR or bpCR were found in subgroup analyses based on ER status (tpCR: p for interaction 􀂈 0.001; bpCR: p for interaction 􀂈 0.001). Among ER-positive patients, the HER2 IHC 2+ group had substantially decreased tpCR, bpCR, and apCR rates than the HER2 IHC 3+ group (tpCR rate: p 􀂈 0.003; bpCR rate: p 􀂈 0.002; apCR rate: p 􀂈 0.002) . For ER-negative individuals, the tpCR, bpCR, and apCR rates did not difer signifcantly among the HER2 IHC 3+ versus HER2 IHC 2+ groups. Similarly, interactions between HER2 IHC score and tpCR, bpCR, or apCR were found in subgroup analyses based on PR status. Conclusion: HER2 IHC 2+ may indicate a decreased tpCR rate, bpCR rate, and apCR rate to neoadjuvant treatment in HRpositive patients having HER2-positive breast cancer, but not in HR-negative patients. Keywords: breast cancer; estrogen receptor; human epidermal growth factor receptor 2; pathological complete response 1. Introduction Te proportion of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive initial breast cancers is believed to be between 15% and 20%[1] . Metastasis to the viscera and central nervous system is common in HER2-positive breast cancer, further worsening the prognosis [2] . Neoadjuvant treatment is an important treatment modality for early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer. It not only shrinks the primary tumor and provides patients with the opportunity for surgical, breast-conserving, or omission of axillary lymph node dissection, but also evaluates the efcacy of the medications, predicts the prognosis, and screens out treatment-na patients who would beneft from intensive treatment 2 Te Breast Journal [3, 4] . Achievement of pathological complete response criteria for inclusion: newly diagnosed invasive breast cancer (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy results in improved by core needle

FAQs

What was the purpose of the study regarding ER status and HER2 IHC scoring?

The study examined whether estrogen receptor status affects the predictive role of the HER2 immunohistochemistry (IHC) score for efficacy of neoadjuvant treatment in HER2-positive breast cancer.

How many patients were included and what treatments were they given?

The retrospective study included 167 individuals diagnosed with HER2-positive invasive breast cancer who received neoadjuvant treatment and then underwent surgery.

What were the key findings about response rates by HER2 IHC level?

Overall tpCR was 41.32%, and tpCR/bpCR/apCR rates were higher in the HER2 IHC 3+ group than in the IHC 2+ group, with significant interactions observed in subgroup analyses by ER and PR status.

Sep 22, 2026

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