Figure 7

High MIF expression in breast tumour tissue positively correlates with survival. Kaplan-Meier analyses of overall survival (OS) (a) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) (b) in relation to MIFprotein expression in breast cancer tissue specimens of 174 and 165 patients, respectively. Distribution of time (months)- and tumour-related death among 174 breast cancer patients with abundant (upper graph) or low (lower graph) MIF expression is shown. (a) Patients featuring low MIF protein expression (IRS = 0–4) have a reduced estimated mean five-year OS survival rate of 50% compared to 67% survival probability for patients with strong MIF expression (IRS = 6–12). (b) Patients exhibiting low MIF protein expression (IRS = 0–4) have an increased risk for tumour relapse (mean RFS rate of 52%) after five years compared to 36% for patients with strong MIF expression (IRS = 6–12).