ErbB4 expression in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck

This study set out to delineate ErbB4 overexpression and its impact on prognosis in squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of head and neck (H&N) origin. Thirty-six of the 47 evaluated SCC of H&N origin came from the larynx, oropharynx, or oral cavity. Twenty-four patients had stage III-IV, 17 had stage I-II, and 6 had recurrent disease. Immunohistochemical stains were performed on paraffin sections using the avidin-biotin-peroxidase method. Forty-five patients received radiation therapy, 24 primary treatment and 21 postoperatively. Nineteen patients with advanced stage disease received concomitant chemotherapy. ErbB4 was highly stained in 24/47 (51%) patients and weakly stained in another 13/47 (28%) patients. Age, gender, site, stage, and treatment approaches similarly distributed between the groups. Overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were similar in ErbB4-positive and ErbB4-negative groups. In conclusion, although ErbB4 is not a prognostic parameter for OS and DFS in H&N SCC, it is highly overexpressed. The high overexpression rate may lead to initiation of anti-ErbB4 targeted therapy in this cohort of patients.