Immunohistochemical Evaluation of Androgen Receptor Expression on Triple Negative Breast Cancer in Sample of Iraqi Female Patients (Clinicopathologic study)

—Background: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), characterized by the absence of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2) expression, aggressive clinical behavior and lack of targeting hormonal therapy. Studies have emphasized the significance of the androgen receptor (AR) in breast cancer pathogenesis and clinical outcomes, indicating its potential role as a therapeutic target. Aim of the study: Evaluation of androgen receptor expression in TNBC in a sample of Iraqi patients and its association with some clinicopathological parameters including age, tumor stage and grade. Patients and methods: A cross sectional study conducted at Al Yarmouk Teaching Hospital and private labs included 60 patients diagnosed with TNBC from mastectomy samples from May 2023 to January 2024. Data were collected focusing on patients with negative ER, PR, and HER-2/neu expression determined by immunohistochemistry. Results: In this study, 78.3% of patients with TNBC were positive for androgen receptor (AR). These patients had a higher mean age compared to those with AR-negative TNBC. TNBC patients with AR positivity tended to have lower T stage tumors and were more likely to have N0 nodal stage compared to AR-negative TNBC patients. Furthermore, AR-positive TNBC patients showed a trend towards lower TNM stage and lower histological grade compared to AR-negative TNBC patients. However, there was no statistically significant association between AR status with age and T stage with p-value >0.05. Conclusion: Higher AR expression is associated with less aggressive clinicopathological features, including lower tumor stage and grade, suggesting a potential role for AR in targeted therapies in managing TNBC