Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina women

BackgroundHER2-positive breast tumors are clinically important breast cancer subtypes with an overall unfavorable prognosis, but also with current optimal treatment options that have significantly improved the patients’ survival. Several epidemiological registries have reported varying prevalence ra...

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Main Authors: Laura Rey-Vargas, Lina María Bejarano-Rivera, Patricia López-Correa, Diego Felipe Ballen-Lozano, Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-07-01
Series:Frontiers in Oncology
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fonc.2025.1635681/full
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author Laura Rey-Vargas
Laura Rey-Vargas
Lina María Bejarano-Rivera
Patricia López-Correa
Diego Felipe Ballen-Lozano
Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez
Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez
author_facet Laura Rey-Vargas
Laura Rey-Vargas
Lina María Bejarano-Rivera
Patricia López-Correa
Diego Felipe Ballen-Lozano
Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez
Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez
author_sort Laura Rey-Vargas
collection DOAJ
description BackgroundHER2-positive breast tumors are clinically important breast cancer subtypes with an overall unfavorable prognosis, but also with current optimal treatment options that have significantly improved the patients’ survival. Several epidemiological registries have reported varying prevalence rates of HER2-positive breast tumors among population groups. In this review, we describe the prevalence of HER2-positive breast tumors by ethnicity, with a special focus on Asian and Latina women, along with genetic variants located in or near ERBB2 that might affect its protein expression.MethodsWe conducted a literature search for studies reporting differences in HER2-positive breast tumor prevalence among populations and HER2/ERBB2 molecular features based on genomic background or ancestry.ResultsOverall, Asian and Latina women tend to have higher proportions of HER2-amplified tumors, compared to non-Hispanic white (NHW) women. Additionally, higher Indigenous American ancestry is associated with an increased likelihood of HER2-positive tumors and elevated ERBB2 expression. We also describe reported differences in the genotype of several genetic variants in ERBB2 or nearby genomic regions according to HER2 expression, and mention variants in other genes that may also be associated.ConclusionsThis literature review contributes to a better understanding of the underlying biology of HER2 expression in breast tumors, and the possible mechanisms that explain the differences in the distribution of HER2-positive subtypes among various population groups.
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spelling doaj-art-38f16edd438f4e62b061fa7e69e1e14b2025-08-20T03:32:20ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Oncology2234-943X2025-07-011510.3389/fonc.2025.16356811635681Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina womenLaura Rey-Vargas0Laura Rey-Vargas1Lina María Bejarano-Rivera2Patricia López-Correa3Diego Felipe Ballen-Lozano4Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez5Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez6Cancer Biology Research Group, National Cancer Institute, Bogotá, ColombiaDoctoral Program in Biological Sciences, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, ColombiaCancer Biology Research Group, National Cancer Institute, Bogotá, ColombiaDepartment of Pathology, National Cancer Institute, Bogotá, ColombiaClinical Oncology Unit, National Cancer Institute, Bogotá, ColombiaCancer Biology Research Group, National Cancer Institute, Bogotá, ColombiaResearch Support and Follow-Up Group, National Cancer Institute, Bogotá, ColombiaBackgroundHER2-positive breast tumors are clinically important breast cancer subtypes with an overall unfavorable prognosis, but also with current optimal treatment options that have significantly improved the patients’ survival. Several epidemiological registries have reported varying prevalence rates of HER2-positive breast tumors among population groups. In this review, we describe the prevalence of HER2-positive breast tumors by ethnicity, with a special focus on Asian and Latina women, along with genetic variants located in or near ERBB2 that might affect its protein expression.MethodsWe conducted a literature search for studies reporting differences in HER2-positive breast tumor prevalence among populations and HER2/ERBB2 molecular features based on genomic background or ancestry.ResultsOverall, Asian and Latina women tend to have higher proportions of HER2-amplified tumors, compared to non-Hispanic white (NHW) women. Additionally, higher Indigenous American ancestry is associated with an increased likelihood of HER2-positive tumors and elevated ERBB2 expression. We also describe reported differences in the genotype of several genetic variants in ERBB2 or nearby genomic regions according to HER2 expression, and mention variants in other genes that may also be associated.ConclusionsThis literature review contributes to a better understanding of the underlying biology of HER2 expression in breast tumors, and the possible mechanisms that explain the differences in the distribution of HER2-positive subtypes among various population groups.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fonc.2025.1635681/fullbreast neoplasmsHER2 geneAmerican Native Continental Ancestrysingle nucleoside polymorphismethnic group
spellingShingle Laura Rey-Vargas
Laura Rey-Vargas
Lina María Bejarano-Rivera
Patricia López-Correa
Diego Felipe Ballen-Lozano
Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez
Silvia J. Serrano-Gómez
Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina women
Frontiers in Oncology
breast neoplasms
HER2 gene
American Native Continental Ancestry
single nucleoside polymorphism
ethnic group
title Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina women
title_full Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina women
title_fullStr Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina women
title_full_unstemmed Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina women
title_short Differences in the distribution of HER2-positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in ERBB2: a special focus on Asian and Latina women
title_sort differences in the distribution of her2 positive breast tumors according to ethnicity and genetic variants in erbb2 a special focus on asian and latina women
topic breast neoplasms
HER2 gene
American Native Continental Ancestry
single nucleoside polymorphism
ethnic group
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fonc.2025.1635681/full
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