• Precious Barnes, Elvis Agbo, Jianjie Wang, Benjamin Amoani, Yeboah Kwaku Opoku, Perditer Okyere, and Roland Osei Saahene.
• Department of Physician Assistant Studies, School of Allied Health Sciences, College of Health and Allied Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.
• Med Princ Pract. 2023 Jan 1; 32 (6): 369378369-378.

ObjectivesNrf2/BACH1/HO-1 proteins have been implicated in the development and progression of tumors. However, their clinical relevance in breast cancer remains unclear and understudied. This study evaluated Nrf2/BACH1/HO-1 protein expression and its relationship with age, tumor grade, tumor stage, TNM, ER, PR, HER2, and histologic type.Methods114 female breast cancer and 30 noncancerous tissues were evaluated for Nrf2/BACH1/HO-1 protein expression using immunohistochemistry and Western blot. The relationships between the expression and clinicopathologic factors were assessed using the χ2 test.Results74% of the cancerous samples had high Nrf2 protein expression, and 26% of them had low Nrf2 protein expression. Regarding the non-cancer samples, 43% had high Nrf2 protein expression and 57% had low Nrf2 protein expression (p < 0.002). 39% of the cancerous samples had high BACH1 protein expression, and 61% had low BACH1 protein expression. For the non-cancer samples, 80% had high BACH1 protein expression and 20% had low BACH1 protein expression (p < 0.031). 67% of the cancerous samples had high HO-1 protein expression, and 33% had low HO-1 protein expression. However, for the non-cancer samples, 17% of them had high HO-1 protein expression and 83% had low HO-1 protein expression (p < 0.001). The expression of Nrf2 and HO-1 significantly correlated with tumor grade, while BACH1 was significantly associated with tumor stage (p < 0.05).ConclusionNrf2, BACH1, and HO-1 could be explored as a biomarker for cancer stage, progression, and prognosis.© 2023 The Author(s). Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.

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