Methods and compositions for evaluating the prognosis of a
breast cancer patient, particularly an early-stage
breast cancer patient, are provided. The methods of the invention comprise detecting expression of at least one, more particularly at least two, biomarker(s) in a body sample, wherein overexpression of the biomarker or a combination of biomarkers is indicative of
breast cancer prognosis. In some embodiments, the body sample is a
breast tissue sample, particularly a primary
breast tumor sample. The biomarkers of the invention are proteins and / or genes whose overexpression is indicative of either a good or bad
cancer prognosis. Biomarkers of interest include proteins and genes involved in
cell cycle regulation,
DNA replication, transcription,
signal transduction,
cell proliferation, invasion,
proteolysis, or
metastasis. In some aspects of the invention, overexpression of a biomarker of interest is detected at the
protein level using biomarker-specific antibodies or at the
nucleic acid level using
nucleic acid hybridization techniques.