STAT3 expression in activating EGFR-driven adenocarcinoma of the lung

Bronchioloalveolar carcinoma (BAC) pattern is often seen at the margin of invasive adenocarcinomas. We investigated EGFR signaling abnormalities involved in the progression of adenocarcinoma. Fifty tumors were obtained from patients who underwent surgery for lung adenocarcinoma seen as dense areas in ground glass opacity on computed tomography. Six, 18, and 26 tumors <1 cm, 1-2 cm, and ≥2 cm in diameter, respectively, were analyzed. Of the 24 tumors ≤2 cm in diameter, nine were preinvasive and 15 were invasive. EGFR, pAKT, and pMAPK were overexpressed in the center of the adenocarcinoma compared to the BAC component (p < 0.01) by immunohistochemistry, while pSTAT3 expression was reversed (p = 0.017). In the tumors ≤2 cm in diameter, pSTAT3 expression in the central area was higher in preinvasive tumors than in invasive tumors (p = 0.005). pSTAT3 was identified in the BAC component of 88% of the EGFR mutant (n = 17) and 82% of the wild-type tumors (n = 33). Transgenic mice expressing delE748-A752 EGFR and two lung cancer cell lines (PC-9 mutant and A549 wild-type EGFR) were also investigated. In transgenic mice, pSTAT3 was overexpressed in the BAC component around the adenocarcinoma center. Two lung cancer cell lines that overexpressed pSTAT3 were equally sensitive to a JAK2/STAT3 inhibitor (JSI-124). The role of STAT3 in the progression of adenocarcinoma should be further pursued.