Histological Assessment of Iron Deposition in Breast Cancer

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

In this study, we investigated the spatial distribution of iron in ER+/HER2- tissues using Prussian blue histochemical staining combined with digital pathology analysis. Whole-slide image evaluation revealed marked intratumoural heterogeneity in iron deposition, with focal iron-rich and iron-poor regions frequently observed within the same tumour. In addition, iron accumulation was often detected in peritumoural areas, suggesting a contributory role of the tumour microenvironment in local iron remodelling. Although Prussian blue staining detects ferric iron and does not directly measure ferroptosis, the presence of iron-rich niches may indicate regions with increased vulnerability to iron-dependent oxidative stress. These findings highlight iron dysregulation as a potential contributor to breast cancer heterogeneity and support further investigation ofinto ferroptosis-related pathways in tissue-based studies.