Abstract
Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) overexpression is increasingly recognized as a frequent molecular abnormality in gastric and gastroesophageal cancer. With the recent introduction of HER2 molecular targeted therapy for patients with advanced gastric cancer, determination of HER2 status is crucial in order to select patients who may benefit from this treatment. This paper provides an update on our knowledge of HER2 in gastric and gastroesophageal cancer, including the prognostic relevance of HER2, the key differences between HER2 protein expression interpretation in breast and gastric cancer, the detection methods and the immunohistochemistry scoring system.
Keywords:
Gastric cancer; Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 testing; Immunohistochemistry; Scoring system; Trastuzumab.
MeSH terms
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Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use
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Biomarkers, Tumor / antagonists & inhibitors
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Biomarkers, Tumor / metabolism*
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Esophagogastric Junction / drug effects
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Esophagogastric Junction / enzymology*
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Esophagogastric Junction / pathology
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Humans
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Immunohistochemistry*
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In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence
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Molecular Targeted Therapy
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Predictive Value of Tests
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Protein Kinase Inhibitors / therapeutic use
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Receptor, ErbB-2 / antagonists & inhibitors
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Receptor, ErbB-2 / genetics
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Receptor, ErbB-2 / metabolism*
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Reproducibility of Results
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Stomach Neoplasms / drug therapy
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Stomach Neoplasms / enzymology*
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Stomach Neoplasms / genetics
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Stomach Neoplasms / pathology
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Trastuzumab / therapeutic use
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Treatment Outcome
Substances
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Antineoplastic Agents
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Biomarkers, Tumor
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Protein Kinase Inhibitors
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ERBB2 protein, human
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Receptor, ErbB-2
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Trastuzumab