A Study of Ki-67 Expression in Breast Cancer, Its Correlation with ER/PR, Her-2 Neu and Histological Grading of Breast Cancer

Abstract

 Objectives: The assessment of neoplastic cell proliferation through immunohistochemical analysis of the proliferative index (Ki-67) can provide insights into the aggressiveness of breast malignant tumors. This study aims to investigate the expression of Ki-67 in individuals with primary breast cancer and establish correlations with estrogen and progesterone receptors, as well as her-2 neu. Methods: This series investigation included 48 cases of primary breast cancers with histological evidence. Tissue specimens xed in parafn wax underwent immunohistochemical staining for the markers Ki-67, ER, PR, and her-2 neu. The evaluation of Ki-67 involved selecting the area with the highest proliferation, categorizing cases with more than 20% positive nuclei as high Ki-67 expression, and considering cases with less than 20% positive nuclei as having low Ki-67 expression. The study examined the association between Ki-67 results and the patients age, histological type, tumor grade, as well as estrogen, progesterone, and her2 neu receptors. Results: High expression of Ki-67 immune reactivity was observed in 45% of the patients. Progesterone and estrogen receptors were present in 77.5% and 67.5% of the cases, respectively. The Ki- 67 showed strong correlations with tumor grade, estrogen receptor, and progesterone receptor, with corresponding p-values of 0.0057, 0.037, and 0.006. However, no statistically signicant correlation was found between patient age and histological types. Conclusion: The expression of Ki-67 demonstrates a noteworthy negative association with established predictive variables such as estrogen and progesterone receptors, while showing a signicant positive correlation with tumor grade.