ORIGINAL ARTICLE
TROP-2 expression in triple-negative and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 enriched breast cancers and its relationship with clinicopathologic parameters
1
Department of Pathology, Gülhane Research and Training Hospital, University of Health Sciences, Ankara, Turkey
2
Department of Pathology, Silifke State Hospital, Silifke/Mersin, Turkey
3
Department of Medical Oncology, Gülhane Research and Training Hospital, University of Health Sciences, Ankara, Turkey
Submission date: 2025-04-14
Final revision date: 2025-11-02
Acceptance date: 2025-11-05
Publication date: 2025-11-28
Pol J Pathol 2025;76(3):248-256
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
TROP-2 is a transmembrane calcium signaling molecule that is detected at a high rate (63%) in breast cancers. There are conflicting data on its relationship with subtypes, clinical, and pathological data in breast cancer.
TROP-2 expression levels were evaluated by immunohistochemistry, and the H-score method was used to analyze the data. This evaluation was conducted on a total of 79 patients diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) positive (HER2-E) breast cancer. The study also investigated the relationship between TROP-2 expression levels and the clinical-pathological features observed in patients diagnosed with TNBC and HER2-E. A total of 62 TNBC (78.5%) and 17 HER2-E (21.5%) cases were analyzed in the study.
The presence of high TROP-2 (H-score > 100) was detected in 87% of the TNBC group and 94% of the HER2-E group.
Among the pathological parameters, only low H-score values were found to have a statistically significant correlation with mucinous morphology; however, no significant correlation was found with other pathological parameters, including CerbB2 expression status. No significant relationship was found between H-score and clinical parameters. Furthermore, TROP-2 expression in HER2-E cancers is notably elevated. Further studies with larger series are required to clarify expression rates in mucinous tumors.
TROP-2 expression levels were evaluated by immunohistochemistry, and the H-score method was used to analyze the data. This evaluation was conducted on a total of 79 patients diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) positive (HER2-E) breast cancer. The study also investigated the relationship between TROP-2 expression levels and the clinical-pathological features observed in patients diagnosed with TNBC and HER2-E. A total of 62 TNBC (78.5%) and 17 HER2-E (21.5%) cases were analyzed in the study.
The presence of high TROP-2 (H-score > 100) was detected in 87% of the TNBC group and 94% of the HER2-E group.
Among the pathological parameters, only low H-score values were found to have a statistically significant correlation with mucinous morphology; however, no significant correlation was found with other pathological parameters, including CerbB2 expression status. No significant relationship was found between H-score and clinical parameters. Furthermore, TROP-2 expression in HER2-E cancers is notably elevated. Further studies with larger series are required to clarify expression rates in mucinous tumors.
REFERENCES (20)
1.
Bray F, Laversanne M, Sung H, Ferlay J, Siegel RL, Soerjomataram I, et al. Global cancer statistics 2022: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin 2024; 74: 229-263.
2.
Chau CH, Steeg PS, Figg WD. Antibody-drug conjugates for cancer. Lancet 2019; 394: 793-804.
3.
Tsuchikama K, Anami Y, Ha SYY, Yamazaki CM. Exploring the next generation of antibody-drug conjugates. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 2024; 21: 203-223.
4.
Zaman S, Jadid H, Denson AC, Gray JE. Targeting TROP-2 in solid tumors: future prospects. Onco Targets Ther 2019; 12: 1781-90.
5.
Yao L, Chen J, Ma W. Decoding TROP2 in breast cancer: significance, clinical implications, and therapeutic advancements. Front Oncol 2023; 13: 1292211.
6.
Ambrogi F, Fornili M, Boracchi P, Trerotola M, Relli V, Simeone P, et al. Trop-2 is a determinant of breast cancer survival. PLoS One 2014; 9: e96993.
7.
Izci H, Punie K, Waumans L, Laenen A, Wildiers H, Verdoodt F, et al. Correlation of TROP-2 expression with clinical-pathological characteristics and outcome in triple-negative breast cancer. Sci Rep 2022; 12: 22498.
8.
Chartier S, Brochard C, Martinat C, Coussy F, Feron JG, Kirova Y, et al. TROP2, androgen receptor, and PD-L1 status in histological subtypes of high-grade metaplastic breast carcinomas. Histopathology 2023; 82: 664-671.
9.
Jeon Y, Jo U, Hong J, Gong G, Lee HJ, et al. Trophoblast cell-surface antigen 2 (TROP2) expression in triple-negative breast cancer. BMC Cancer 2022; 22: 1014.
10.
Sakach E, Sacks R, Kalinsky K. Trop-2 as a therapeutic target in breast cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14.
11.
Lokuhetty D, White V, Watanabe R, Cree I. WHO Classification of Breast Tumours. 5th ed. WHO, Geneva 2019.
12.
Yang X, Hu Y, Shi H, Zhang C, Wang Z, Liu X, et al. The diagnostic value of TROP-2, SLP-2 and CD56 expression in papillary thyroid carcinoma. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2018; 275: 2127-21234.
13.
Yeung V, Zaemes J, Yeh J, Giancarlo C, Ahn J, Reuss JE, et al. High levels of expression of Trop-2 in thymic epithelial tumors. Lung Cancer 2023; 184: 107324.
14.
Van Bockstal MR, Depelsemaeker MC, Daoud L, Fontanges Q, Francois A, Guiot Y, et al. Evaluation of trophoblast cell surface antigen-2 (TROP2) protein expression in chemotherapy-resistant and metastatic breast carcinomas. Pathol Res Pract 2024; 264: 155724.
15.
Bardia A, Tolaney SM, Punie K, Loirat D, Oliveira M, Kalinsky K, et al. Biomarker analyses in the phase III ASCENT study of sacituzumab govitecan versus chemotherapy in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. Ann Oncol 2021; 32: 1148-1156.
16.
Zeng P, Chen MB, Zhou LN, Tang M, Liu CY, Lu PH, et al. Impact of TROP2 expression on prognosis in solid tumors: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sci Rep 2016; 6: 33658.
17.
Gion M, Garcia-Mosquera JJ, Perez-Garcia JM, Peg V, Ruiz-Borrego M, Stradella A, et al. Correlation between trophoblast cell-surface antigen-2 (Trop-2) expression and pathological complete response in patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer treated with neoadjuvant docetaxel, carboplatin, trastuzumab, and pertuzumab. Breast Cancer Res Treat 2024; 205: 589-598.
18.
Lai J, Deng S, Cao J, Ren Y, Xu Z, Qi X, et al. Identification of biomarker associated with Trop2 in breast cancer: implication for targeted therapy. Discov Oncol 2024; 15: 413.
19.
Aslan M, Hsu EC, Garcia-Marques FJ, Bermudez A, Liu S, Shen M, et al. Oncogene-mediated metabolic gene signature predicts breast cancer outcome. NPJ Breast Cancer 2021; 7: 141.
20.
Mertens RB, Makhoul EP, Li X, Dadmanesh F. Comparative expression of trophoblast cell-surface antigen 2 (TROP2) in the different molecular subtypes of invasive breast carcinoma: an immunohistochemical study of 94 therapy-naive primary breast tumors. Ann Diagn Pathol 2024; 68: 152226.
Share
RELATED ARTICLE
| eISSN: | 2084-9869 |
| ISSN: | 1233-9687 |
We process personal data collected when visiting the website. The function of obtaining information about users and their behavior is carried out by voluntarily entered information in forms and saving cookies in end devices. Data, including cookies, are used to provide services, improve the user experience and to analyze the traffic in accordance with the Privacy policy. Data are also collected and processed by Google Analytics tool (more).
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
