Abstract 2877: Focal adhesion kinsase (FAK) protein overexpression and gene copy number gain correlate with better outcome in patients with surgically resected NSCLC tumors

Purpose: Cancer cell migration mechanisms are important for invasion and metastasis development. Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is a critical cancer-related signaling molecule that regulates cell motility and migration. We investigated the effect of tumor FAK protein expression and gene copy number gain in the prognosis of patients with surgically resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Material and Methods: We studied FAK protein expression by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 216 NSCLC stages I-III archival tumors, including 151 adenocarcinomas (ACs) and 65 squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs). In 190 of these tumors (132 ACs and 58 SCCs), we examined FAK gene copy number by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). FAK IHC expression was examined using the H-score, and a score >150 was defined as overexpression. We examined the correlation of FAK abnormalities with tumors' clinic-pathological and molecular features, and with patients' outcome, including recurrence free and overall survivals. Results: FAK cytoplasmic protein expression score (P