Stromal cell expression of Caveolin-1 predicts outcome in breast cancer

SLOAN E. K.; CIOCCA D. R.; POULIOT N.; NATOLI A.; RESTALL C.; HENDERSON M. A.; FANELLI M. A.; CUELLO CARRIÓN F. D.; GAGO F. E.; ANDERSON R. L.

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PATHOLOGY

AMER SOC INVESTIGATIVE PATHOLOGY, INC

Lugar: Bethesda, MD; Año: 2009 vol. 174 p. 2035 - 2043

0002-9440

Caveolin-1 has been linked to tumor progression and clinical outcome in breast cancer, but a clear resolution of its role as a prognostic marker is lacking. We assessed Caveolin-1 levels in normal breast tissue and two breast cancer cohorts for which outcome data were available. We found that Caveolin-1 was not expressed in normal breast luminal epithelium but was present in the epithelial compartment of some tumors. We found no association between Caveolin-1 expression in the epithelial compartment and clinical outcome. However, high levels of Caveolin-1 in the stromal tissue surrounding the tumor, rather than within tumor cells, associated strongly with reduced metastasis and improved survival (P < 0.0001). The onset of mammary tumors driven by Her2/neu overexpression was accelerated in mice lacking caveolin-1, thereby supporting the observation that the presence of Caveolin-1 in the tumor microenvironment modulates tumor development. These studies suggest that stromal Caveolin-1 expression may be a potential therapeutic target and a valuable prognostic indicator of breast cancer progression.