Expression of estrogen receptors ERα and ERβ in endometrial hyperplasia and adenocarcinoma

We assessed the expression of estrogen receptors (ER)alpha and ER beta in 114 human endometrial hyperplasia and adenocarcinomas. The aim of this study was to determine the expression of both ER isoforms in human endometrial tissue by immunohistochemistry. From normal proliferation to simple and complex hyperplasia, the expression of ER alpha was increased (P < 0.05), while ER beta did not change much (P > 0.05). In atypia hyperplasia and adenocarcinoma, both ER alpha and ER beta were decreased significantly (P < 0.05). Most endometrial adenocarcinomas expressed ER alpha, either alone or in combination with ER beta, and the ER beta/ER alpha ratio was decreased when compared to normal proliferation (P < 0.05). Also, we found that the expression of ER alpha and ER beta has no relationship with the status of lymph node of adenocarcinoma (P > 0.05). Both ER alpha and ER beta play an important role in endometrial hyperplasia and carcinomas, the levels of ER alpha and ER beta appear be used as prognostic indicators.