CD44 isoforms in prognosis of breast cancer

SiR-Kaufmann and colleagues (March 11, p 615) assessthe expression of CD44 isoforms in breast cancer andcorrelate the data with outlook. With antibodies againsthuman CD44 variant isoforms (CD44v), they showsignificant correlations between presence of v6 epitopes andoverall survival. Reactivity against DIII, a polyclonal serum,emerged as an independent prognostic factor in multivariateanalyses, surpassing in risk even such established factors aslymph-node status, tumour size, and histological grading.These workers claim the necessity for further studiesincluding more patients.