Affiliations 

  • 1 Centre for Oral Health Research, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom. Department of Cellular Pathology, Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom. timothy.bates@ncl.ac.uk
  • 2 Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom
  • 3 Oral Diagnosis Department, College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq
  • 4 Centre for Oral Health Research, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom. Newcastle University Medicine Malaysia, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom
  • 5 Centre for Oral Health Research, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom. Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom
  • 6 Department of Cellular Pathology, Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom
  • 7 Oral Pathology, King's College London Dental Institute, London, United Kingdom
  • 8 Centre for Oral Health Research, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom. Department of Cellular Pathology, Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom
  • 9 Centre for Oral Health Research, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, United Kingdom
Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev, 2016 Jun;25(6):927-35.
PMID: 27197272 DOI: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-15-0949

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a global healthcare problem associated with poor clinical outcomes. Early detection is key to improving patient survival. OSCC may be preceded by clinically recognizable lesions, termed oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD). As histologic assessment of OPMD does not accurately predict their clinical behavior, biomarkers are required to detect cases at risk of malignant transformation. Epidermal growth factor receptor gene copy number (EGFR GCN) is a validated biomarker in lung non-small cell carcinoma. We examined EGFR GCN in OPMD and OSCC to determine its potential as a biomarker in oral carcinogenesis.

METHODS: EGFR GCN was examined by in situ hybridization (ISH) in biopsies from 78 patients with OPMD and 92 patients with early-stage (stages I and II) OSCC. EGFR ISH signals were scored by two pathologists and a category assigned by consensus. The data were correlated with patient demographics and clinical outcomes.

RESULTS: OPMD with abnormal EGFR GCN were more likely to undergo malignant transformation than diploid cases. EGFR genomic gain was detected in a quarter of early-stage OSCC, but did not correlate with clinical outcomes.

CONCLUSION: These data suggest that abnormal EGFR GCN has clinical utility as a biomarker for the detection of OPMD destined to undergo malignant transformation. Prospective studies are required to verify this finding. It remains to be determined if EGFR GCN could be used to select patients for EGFR-targeted therapies.

IMPACT: Abnormal EGFR GCN is a potential biomarker for identifying OPMD that are at risk of malignant transformation. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 25(6); 927-35. ©2016 AACR.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.