Abstract
Background: Meningiomas consist of 15%–30% of the primary intracranial tumors, and high-grade
meningiomas have a higher recurrence after surgery. The human epidermal growth factor
receptor 2 (HER2) status is important in the medical management of patients with various
human cancers. This study aimed to evaluate HER2 expression in meningiomas and the
correlation between this expression and age, gender, and grade. Materials and Methods: In a descriptive-analytic study, immunohistochemistry (IHC) with HER2 marker was
done on confirmed cases of meningioma which were referred to the pathology laboratory
from 2008 to 2015. The primary antihuman antibody against c-erbB-2 oncoprotein (DAKO
Diagnostics) was used for IHC. Results: Of 117 patients, 68.4% were males. The mean age of the patients was 53.6 years. Grades
I, II, and III tumors were 90.6%, 8.5%, and 0.9% of cases, respectively. Totally,
76 (65%) of patients were HER2 positive, with only 7.7% of highly expressed HER2.
There was no significant correlation between the mean age (P = 0.672), age group (P
= 0.256), sex (P = 0.574), and grade (P = 0.093) and HER2 expression status. Conclusions: We did not find a statistically significant correlation between age, sex, or grade
and HER2 status; however, further studies with a higher number of Grades II and III
meningiomas and using the fluorescent in situ hybridization in equivocal cases may
be of benefit in this way.
Keywords
Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 - immunohistochemistry - meningioma