Significance of USP7 in Predicting Prognosis of Mammary Ductal Adenocarcinoma in the Turkish Population

Abstract

Objective: Breast cancer has the highest incidence and mortality rate among women worldwide. This study aims to analyze ubiquitin specific protease 7 (USP7) levels in mammary ductal adenocarcinoma patients in the Turkish population, to identify whether there is a relationship between the levels of USP7 protein and bad prognosis, which is indicated by enlarged tumor size, younger age, and receiving neo-adjuvant treatment. Materials and Methods: In our study, we analyzed USP7 levels by immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining in 38 mammary adenocarcinoma cases in the Turkish population. Corelation analyses were performed to evaluate the distribution of the patients by their age, tumor size, Ki-67 levels, and the status of neo-adjuvant treatment by their USP7 levels. The IHC data concluded that the average age and tumor size are reversely proportional to the USP7 levels, insignificantly. The differences between the levels of USP7 and Ki-67 measurements were found to be statistically insignificant between the groups. Results: Women who received the neo-adjuvant therapy prior to the operation presented much lower amount of USP7 levels when compared to their non-treated counterparts. Conclusions: These findings highlighted that mammary ductal adenocarcinoma patients in the Turkish population present varying USP7 protein levels. Even though the levels of UPS7 are partially insignificant, the presence of USP7 protein might be a prognostic indicator in breast cancer patients in the Turkish population with a larger study set. © 2023, Istanbul University Press. All rights reserved.