Abstract 4723: Prognostic significance of EGFR expression in localized gastric cancer

Background: The role of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression as predictive or prognostic biomarker in gastric cancer is still in controversy. The aim of this study is to find prognostic role of tumor EGFR expression in gastric cancer patients after curative resection. Methods: From January 2000 to September 2003, gastric cancer patients who received curative gastrectomy were included in this study. We retrospectively collected clinical characteristics and survival data of the patients, and analyzed EGFR expression on tissue microarrays from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded specimens of primary tumor tissues by immunochemical staining (IHC). EGFR expression was scored to 0, 1+, 2+ or 3+ based on intensity of reactivity. Results: Of total 937 patients, 295 (31.5%) patients, 101 (10.8%) patients and 36 (3.8%) patients showed EGFR 1+, 2+, and 3+ expression by IHC, respectively. EGFR overexpression (2+/3+) is more frequently found in intestinal type than diffuse or mixed type (24.2% vs. 5.1%, P