Iliac Crest Needle Biopsy as a Method for Determining Estrogen Receptors in Bone Metastases from Breast Cancer

Abstract

The purpose of our study was to clarify whether the amount of tissue extracted by means of iliac crest needle biopsy (ICNB) would suffice for a quantitative determination of estrogen receptors (ER) in bone metastases, and to see if the method currently used for determining ER in primary tumors could also be successfully utilized in ICNB. 22 of 31 breast cancer patients examined could be evaluated. ER was positive in 7 (31.8%). Reasonable data are to be expected when the biopsy weight exceeds 0.1 g. Our study confirms that the necessary amount of tissue for ER analysis can indeed be extracted by ICNB. Our results justify further studies on a larger group of patients, since we cannot make conclusive statements concerning the value of this method for predicting the ultimate success of an endocrine treatment.

[18F]-Estradiol PET/CT Imaging in Breast Cancer Patients

“…Recurrent breast cancer may have low ER expression, even though the original primary tumor was ER+ [1,2]. It is supposed that there are differences in the estrogen-receptor content of primary and metastatic lesions in 20-25% of breast cancer patients [2,3,4].…”