Publications by authors named "Nader-Marta G"
Article Synopsis
- The study explores how low levels of HER2 expression affect breast cancer treatment outcomes and the success of hormone therapy in patients.
- It analyzes data from a large international study called PALLAS, which included over 5,000 patients to see how HER2 status impacts survival rates and response to the drug palbociclib.
- The research found that HER2-low levels are common and vary between countries, but HER2 status didn’t significantly change the success rate of hormone therapy in the patients.
Article Synopsis
- Young women with breast cancer have a higher likelihood of carrying harmful BRCA gene variants, but data on tumor histology's prognostic value is limited.
- A study involving 4,628 patients revealed that lobular tumors are generally diagnosed at a later stage and are more often linked to BRCA2 mutations, while ductal tumors are frequently associated with BRCA1 mutations.
- Despite differences in tumor characteristics and treatment approaches, the study found no significant differences in disease-free or overall survival between those with ductal and lobular tumors, indicating that histology may not influence prognosis.
Article Synopsis
- The SOLAR-1 and CAPItello-29 studies show that the PI3Ki alpelisib and AKTi capivasertib are beneficial for patients with hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who have specific genetic alterations.
- Despite their effectiveness, these drugs can cause significant toxicities that may limit their use, especially in frail patients, highlighting the need for careful patient selection.
- The review emphasizes the importance of identifying predictive biomarkers, particularly PIK3CA mutations and AKT pathway alterations, while noting that current diagnostic methods are not yet optimal, and suggests that ongoing monitoring of mutations in metastatic tissue and blood is crucial for effective treatment.
Introduction: The CLEOPATRA trial (NCT00567190) established a dual anti-HER2 blockade in combination with docetaxel as the first-line standard of care for patients with metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer. While this treatment is overall associated with significant improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), not all patients respond equally. We hypothesized that a radiological complete response (CR) at week 9 (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAround 90% of breast tumours are diagnosed in the early stage, with approximately 70% being hormone receptor-positive. The cornerstone of adjuvant therapy for early-stage hormone receptor-positive breast cancer is endocrine therapy, tailored according to disease stage, biological characteristics of the tumour, patient's comorbidities, preferences and age. In premenopausal patients with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, ovarian function suppression is a key component of the adjuvant endocrine treatment in combination with an aromatase inhibitor or tamoxifen.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The incorporation of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) into the management of operable breast cancer (BC) has been hampered by the heterogeneous results from different studies. We aimed to assess the prognostic value of ctDNA in patients with operable (non metastatic) BC.
Materials And Methods: A systematic search of databases (PubMed/Medline, Embase, and CENTRAL) and conference proceedings was conducted to identify studies reporting the association of ctDNA detection with disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients with stage I-III BC.
The results of several studies aiming to tailor early breast cancer treatment to individual risk were released in 2023. Axillary lymph node dissections and radiotherapy may be safely omitted in carefully selected patients. Sustained benefit from adjuvant CDK4/6 inhibitors was observed in high-risk hormone receptor-positive disease and the addition of immunotherapy to neoadjuvant chemotherapy improved pathological response.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Currently three antibody-drug-conjugates (ADC) are approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for treatment of breast cancer (BC) patient: trastuzumab-emtansine, trastuzumab-deruxtecan and sacituzumab-govitecan. ADC are composed of a monoclonal antibody (mAb) targeting a specific antigen, a cytotoxic payload and a linker. Pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) distinguish ADC from conventional chemotherapy and must be understood by clinicians.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) has advocated the establishment of guidelines to optimise precision radiotherapy (RT) in conjunction with contemporary therapeutics for cancer care. Quality assurance in RT (QART) plays a pivotal role in influencing treatment outcomes. Clinical trials incorporating QART protocols have demonstrated improved survival rates with minimal associated toxicity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Neoadjuvant treatment discriminates responders, but pathologic complete response is uncommon in oestrogen receptor (ER)-positive/HER2-negative early breast cancer. We aimed to assess the prognostic value of Ki-67 index after neoadjuvant endocrine therapy (NET).
Methods: We conducted a systematic literature search of PubMed, Embase, CENTRAL, and conference proceedings up to 22nd August 2023 to identify studies reporting the association of Ki-67 index after NET with recurrence-free survival (RFS) and/or overall survival (OS) in women with ER-positive/HER2-negative early breast cancer.
Article Synopsis
- * Three randomized controlled trials involving 642 patients were analyzed, revealing that while overall pain response did not significantly differ between the two methods, SBRT showed a marked improvement in complete pain response after both 3 and 6 months.
- * SBRT was found to have similar adverse events compared to cEBRT, but it resulted in significantly less radiation dermatitis; the research suggests SBRT may be a safer and more effective option for certain patients, prompting the need for further research.
Article Synopsis
- Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) accounts for about 15% of breast cancers, and the relationship between body mass index (BMI) at diagnosis and patient outcomes is under-researched.
- A study analyzed data from 2856 patients with non-metastatic ILC and found that a higher BMI correlated with older age, larger tumor size, and worse prognosis indicators.
- Although higher BMI initially showed worse survival outcomes, further analysis suggested that other factors, like tumor grade and size, were more significant indicators of patient prognosis.
Circulating tumor DNA in breast cancer: a biomarker for patient selection.
Curr Opin Oncol
September 2023
Article Synopsis
- This review focuses on the use of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) as a biomarker to select breast cancer patients for treatment, examining current evidence and active trials in both early and metastatic stages.* -
- In metastatic breast cancer, ctDNA analysis can reveal specific genetic changes that allow for targeted therapies; approved tests already exist for mutations like PIK3CA and ESR1 which guide treatment decisions.* -
- In the early stages, ctDNA may help detect relapses up to 10 months earlier than traditional imaging, potentially leading to better treatment planning, although further validation through trials is necessary.*
Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are a class of antineoplastic agents whose structure is composed of three main components: a monoclonal antibody (mAB) targeting a specific target antigen, a cytotoxic payload, and a linker binding the antibody to the payload. By combining the specificity of mABs with the high potency of the payloads, ADCs constitute a smart drug delivery system with improved therapeutic index. After recognition and binding of the mAB to its target surface antigen, ADCs are internalized by endocytosis by the tumor cell, releasing the payloads into the cytoplasm, where they exert their cytotoxic activity, eventually leading to cell death.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-low expression in breast cancer has been recently identified as a new therapeutic target. However, it is unclear if HER2-low status has an independent impact on prognosis.
Materials And Methods: A systematic literature research was carried out to identify studies comparing survival outcomes of patients affected by HER2-low versus HER2-zero breast cancer.
The cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 inhibitors (CDK4/6i) have become the standard of care for hormone receptor-positive (HR + ) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative (HER2-) metastatic breast cancer, improving survival outcomes compared to endocrine therapy alone. Abemaciclib and ribociclib, in combination with endocrine therapy, have demonstrated significant benefits in invasive disease-free survival for high-risk HR+/HER2- early breast cancer patients. Each CDK4/6i-palbociclib, ribociclib, and abemaciclib-exhibits distinct toxicity profiles.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Purpose: Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women and radiation therapy (RT) is crucial in its multimodality management. Since bibliometrics is a powerful tool to reveal the scientific literature, we decided to perform a bibliometric analysis of the literature on breast cancer radiotherapy. We explored emerging trends and common patterns in research, tracking collaboration and networks, and foreseeing future directions in this clinical setting.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma (CSCC) is among the most frequent malignancies worldwide. For those not amenable to treatment with curative intent, immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) with anti-programmed death receptor 1 (PD-1) antibodies has emerged as a novel therapeutic option. In this study, the authors sought to investigate the activity of the anti-PD-1 agent nivolumab in patients with advanced CSCC (aCSCC).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Special histological types (SHT) of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) are a heterogeneous group of rare poorly understood diseases. We aimed to evaluate the clinical features, treatment, and outcomes of patients with SHT of TNBC.
Methods: We evaluated patients with a SHT of TNBC treated in a cancer center between 2009 and 2020.
Background: Patients with small node-negative HER2-positive breast cancer are commonly treated with paclitaxel and 1 year of adjuvant trastuzumab. We performed a sub-analysis of the ALTTO trial to explore the long-term outcomes of patients with small node-negative tumours.
Methods: The ALTTO trial randomised 8381 patients with early HER2-positive BC treated with adjuvant chemotherapy (anthracycline/taxane- or taxane/carboplatin-based), to trastuzumab (T), lapatinib (L), their sequence (T → L) or their combination (L + T).
Purpose: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the immune response to anti-SARS-CoV-2 prime-vaccination in patients with cancer.
Methods: We performed a systematic literature search using PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library until 28/09/2021, and conference proceedings from ASCO and ESMO 2021 annual meetings. We screened for observational or interventional studies including subjects ≥ 16 years old with cancer diagnosis who were vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2.