Carcinoma en cuirasse.

Carcinoma en cuirasse (CeC) is an extremely rare form of cutaneous metastasis of breast cancer. Guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of CeC are limited due to the small number of reported cases. It can be difficult to distinguish CeC from benign etiologies on initial presentation, but CeC can be easily distinguished by histopathology.

Clinico-radiologic features and management of hematological tumors in the breast: a case series.

Hematological tumors arising in the breast are uncommon and require different treatment modalities dependent upon tumor type. Current treatment options include surgical excision, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. Management of these breast malignancies are poorly outlined in the literature.

Five-year results of a phase II trial of preoperative 5-fluorouracil, epirubicin, cyclophosphamide followed by docetaxel with capecitabine (wTX) (with trastuzumab in HER2-positive patients) for patients with stage II or III breast cancer.

We aimed to increase pathologic complete response (pCR) in patients with invasive breast cancer by adding preoperative capecitabine to docetaxel following 5-fluorouracil, epirubicin, cyclophosphamide (FEC) (with trastuzumab for patients with HER2-positive disease) and to evaluate 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) associated with this preoperative regimen. Chemotherapy included four cycles of FEC100 (5-fluorouracil 500 mg/m , epirubicin 100 mg/m , cyclophosphamide 500 mg/m IV on Day 1 every 21 days) followed by 4 21-day cycles of docetaxel (35 mg/m  days 1 and 8) concurrently with capecitabine (825 mg/m orally twice daily for 14 days followed by 7 days off) (wTX). For HER2-positive patients, treatment was modified by decreasing epirubicin to 75 mg/m and adding trastuzumab (H) in standard doses (FEC75-H →wTX-H).

Two cancers in one: breast carcinoma with underlying melanoma.

A 61-year-old woman presented with a diagnosis of metastatic invasive lobular carcinoma of the right breast, and after treatment it had regressed or was stable except for a scalp nodule. When biopsied, the outer edges of the scalp lesion had findings consistent with breast carcinoma; however, the bulk of the tumor's pathology was consistent with melanoma. It appeared that most of the tumor was a highly vascularized melanoma with lobular breast carcinoma noted at its edges.

Our experience as a Health Volunteers Overseas-sponsored team in Huê´, Vietnam.

A group from Texas Oncology and Baylor Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center traveled to Huê´, Vietnam, as part of Health Volunteers Overseas. From February 21 to March 6, 2012, five Baylor Sammons medical oncologists and an oncology nurse worked with a medical oncologist and a surgeon at the Huê´ College of Medicine and Pharmacy, suggesting approaches based on available resources.

Iniparib plus chemotherapy in metastatic triple-negative breast cancer.

Background: Triple-negative breast cancers have inherent defects in DNA repair, making this cancer a rational target for therapy based on poly(adenosine diphosphate-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibition.

Methods: We conducted an open-label, phase 2 study to compare the efficacy and safety of gemcitabine and carboplatin with or without iniparib, a small molecule with PARP-inhibitory activity, in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. A total of 123 patients were randomly assigned to receive gemcitabine (1000 mg per square meter of body-surface area) and carboplatin (at a dose equivalent to an area under the concentration-time curve of 2) on days 1 and 8--with or without iniparib (at a dose of 5.

Independent adjudication of symptomatic heart failure with the use of doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide followed by trastuzumab adjuvant therapy: a combined review of cardiac data from the National Surgical Adjuvant breast and Bowel Project B-31 and the North Central Cancer Treatment Group N9831 clinical trials.

Purpose: An independent Adjuvant Cardiac Review and Evaluation Committee (ACREC) systematically reviewed cases of symptomatic heart failure events to uniformly define the cardiac event rate across two large trials (National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project [NSABP] B-31 and North Central Cancer Treatment Group [NCCTG] N9831) that assessed the addition of trastuzumab to standard adjuvant chemotherapy.

Patients And Methods: The committee was composed of six independent oncologists and cardiologists. A retrospective review of patients with a cardiac event was performed by the primary investigators of the trials.

Docetaxel With Cyclophosphamide Is Associated With an Overall Survival Benefit Compared With Doxorubicin and Cyclophosphamide: 7-Year Follow-Up of US Oncology Research Trial 9735.

Purpose: We previously reported that four cycles of docetaxel/cyclophosphamide (TC) produced superior disease-free survival (DFS) compared with four cycles of doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide (AC) in early breast cancer. Older women are under-represented in adjuvant chemotherapy trials. In our trial 16% of patients were > or = 65 years.

Phase II study of weekly albumin-bound paclitaxel for patients with metastatic breast cancer heavily pretreated with taxanes.

Purpose: Nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel, a solvent-free, albumin-bound paclitaxel, demonstrated antitumor activity in patients with taxane-naive metastatic breast cancer (MBC). We examined albumin-bound paclitaxel (100 mg/m2 or 125 mg/m2 administered weekly) to determine the antitumor activity in patients with MBC whose disease progressed despite conventional taxane therapy.

Patients And Methods: Women with MBC that was previously treated with taxanes were eligible for participation.

Determination of oestrogen-receptor status and ERBB2 status of breast carcinoma: a gene-expression profiling study.

Background: Gene expression microarrays are being used to develop new prognostic and predictive tests for breast cancer, and might be used at the same time to confirm oestrogen-receptor status and ERBB2 status. Our goal was to establish a new method to assign oestrogen receptor and ERBB2-receptor status to breast carcinoma based on mRNA expression measured using Affymetrix U133A gene-expression profiling.

Methods: We used gene expression data of 495 breast cancer samples to assess the correlation between oestrogen receptor (ESR1) and ERBB2 mRNA and clinical status of these genes (as established by immunohistochemical [IHC] or fluorescence in-situ hybridisation [FISH], or both).

Phase III trial comparing doxorubicin plus cyclophosphamide with docetaxel plus cyclophosphamide as adjuvant therapy for operable breast cancer.

Purpose: The combination of doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (AC) is a standard adjuvant chemotherapy regimen. Studies of docetaxel and cyclophosphamide (TC) in metastatic breast cancer (MBC) showed promise in MBC. In 1997, we initiated a randomized adjuvant trial of TC compared with standard-dose AC with a primary end point of disease-free survival (DFS).

Phase II study of trastuzumab plus gemcitabine in chemotherapy-pretreated patients with metastatic breast cancer.

We evaluated the efficacy and toxicity of trastuzumab plus gemcitabine in patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Sixty-four patients were enrolled, the majority of whom (95%) had been treated with an anthracycline and a taxane before study enrollment. Eligible women were treated with gemcitabine (1200 mg/m(2) weekly for 2 weeks with the third week off on a 21-day cycle) plus weekly doses of trastuzumab (4-mg/kg loading dose; 2 mg/kg thereafter) until disease progression.

Phase II, randomized, double-blind study of two dose levels of arzoxifene in patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer.

Purpose: To select a daily dose of arzoxifene (LY353381), a selective estrogen receptor modulator, for use in future studies in women with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer who are either potentially tamoxifen sensitive (TS) or tamoxifen refractory (TR).

Patients And Methods: This trial was a randomized, double-blind, phase II study of arzoxifene 20 mg (n = 55) and 50 mg (n = 57) in women with advanced or metastatic breast cancer. Patients were randomly assigned to balance for number of metastatic disease sites, prior tamoxifen therapy, and estrogen receptor status.