Breast cancer is one of the most common female
malignancies in clinical practice, which ranks number one in terms of its high incidence. We investigated the relevance of ultrasonic features of
breast cancer and expression levels of C-erbB-2,
vascular endothelial growth factor (
VEGF) and nm23 and its clinical significance. A total of 76 patients with
breast cancer were recruited who were admitted to The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University from January, 2016 to August, 2017. All patients underwent color Doppler ultrasonic imaging, and expression levels of C-erbB-2,
VEGF and nm23 in their
tumor tissues were measured by immunohistochemistry. The ultrasonic features were evaluated and compared with the expression levels of C-erbB-2,
VEGF and nm23 for each patient. Ultrasonography showed a
tumor mass with spiculated margins, abnormal vasculature, and a diameter no less than 3 cm, as well as
lymph node metastasis. The above signs were associated with high expression of C-erbB-2,
VEGF and nm23 (p<0.05), but calcification was not associated with high expression of these
biomarkers (p>0.05). For patients with highly expressed C-erbB-2 and
VEGF, the time to peak (
TTP) of the time-intensity curve obtained by contrast enhanced ultrasound was shorter, while the peak intensity (PI) was higher. On the contrary, for patients with highly expressed nm23, the
TTP was apparently longer, while the PI was lower (p<0.05). The ultrasonic features of
breast cancer were relevant to the expression levels of C-erbB-2,
VEGF and nm23. Thus, the expression levels of C-erbB-2,
VEGF and nm23 were predictable indirectly according to the ultrasonic features of the patient, which can be used as a reference for
breast cancer treatment and prognosis prediction.