Immunohistochemical Markers in Breast Cancer: A Cross-Sectional Study on Triple-Negative Breast Cancer in a Rural Tertiary Care Hospital

Introduction The incidence of breast cancer in India is on the rise, and it is now the most common cancer affecting women in India. The main objective of our study was to estimate the prevalence of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) in our study population and compare the various clinicopathological characteristics of TNBC with those of non-TNBC in these patients. Methods A retrospective, cross-sectional study was conducted among 249 cases of female breast cancer who reported to a tertiary care hospital in Southern India from September 2017 to September 2021. Results The mean age at presentation was 52 years (range: 26-82 years). The prevalence of triple-negative breast cancer was 19.7%. Most of the subjects belonged to the age group of 40-60 years. The majority were with grade 2 and 3 diseases. Of the cases, 50.6% were estrogen receptor (ER) positive and 48.2% were progesterone receptor (PR) positive, and 40.1% were HER2/neu positive. Conclusion The prevalence of triple-negative breast cancer in our study population is 19.7%, which is in concordance with the literature. Large tumor size, high-grade tumors, and a higher rate of axillary lymph node metastasis are characteristic features of TNBC. TNBC are tumors with aggressive tumor biology and are associated with poor prognosis.