LAUSR

Breast cancer is the most frequent type of carcinoma and the second most common cause of death from carcinomas in women (1-3). Prognostic variables for breast cancer have traditionally included node status, histological grade, tumor size, hormone receptor (HR) status, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression. Numerous studies have suggested that nodal involvement is the most crucial prognostic parameter, and play a pivotal role in instructing treatment (4,5). In 2000, Perou et al. identified breast tumor cells that shared gene expression patterns and clustered it into four subtypes: luminal epithelial/estrogen receptor (ER) positive, normal-breast-like, basal-like, and/ or cells with over-expression of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) gene (6). Previous studies reported that molecular subtypes are associated with different risks of early disease recurrence, metastases, and survival (7-9). Although nodal involvement and molecular subtypes are both independently well-recognized prognostic indicators, it remains unclear whether there is Original Article