©The Author(s) 2016. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Oncol. Apr 10, 2016; 7(2): 160-173
Published online Apr 10, 2016. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v7.i2.160
Published online Apr 10, 2016. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v7.i2.160
Estrogen receptor alpha gene amplification in breast cancer: 25 years of debate
Frederik Holst, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, Boston, MA 02215, United States
Frederik Holst, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, 5020 Bergen, Norway
Author contributions: Holst F wrote this review.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Holst F has royalty interest associated with intellectual property of ZytoVision GmbH concerning patent US8101352B2 “Detection of ESR1 Amplification in Breast Cancer” and according EU patent application in the European Union.
Correspondence to: Frederik Holst, PhD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, 450 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, United States. frederik.holst@uib.no
Telephone: +1-617-6324515
Received: July 2, 2015
Peer-review started: July 7, 2015
First decision: September 18, 2015
Revised: January 5, 2016
Accepted: February 14, 2016
Article in press: February 16, 2016
Published online: April 10, 2016
Processing time: 280 Days and 7.8 Hours
Peer-review started: July 7, 2015
First decision: September 18, 2015
Revised: January 5, 2016
Accepted: February 14, 2016
Article in press: February 16, 2016
Published online: April 10, 2016
Processing time: 280 Days and 7.8 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: The estrogen receptor alpha gene gene (ESR1) is one of the most important genes in breast cancer, but the prevalence of ESR1 amplification is matter of ongoing debate. A number of studies suggest that technical issues and lack of standards contribute to the discrepant findings. Future studies should focus on the potential clinical relevance of this phenomenon.