Germline Pathogenic Variants and Clinical Outcomes in Asian Patients With Breast Cancer.

Despite the importance of genetic testing for risk assessment and treatment in breast cancer, the prognostic impact of germline pathogenic variants (PVs), especially in Asian populations, is unclear. We assessed the impact of germline PVs in patients with early-stage breast cancer. This study included 7278 Japanese multihospital registry patients.

Multicenter Prospective Study in HER2-Positive Early Breast Cancer for Detecting Minimal Residual Disease by Circulating Tumor DNA Analysis With Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy: HARMONY Study.

Background: Biomarkers to predict the recurrence risk are required to optimize perioperative treatment. Adjuvant chemotherapy for patients with human epidermal growth factor 2-positive (HER2-positive) early breast cancer is decided by pathological responses of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC). However, whether pathological responses are appropriate biomarkers is unclear.

Prognostic impact of HER2-low positivity in patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative, node-positive early breast cancer.

Adjuvant therapy for patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative, node-positive, early breast cancer (EBC) remains challenging. The prognostic significance of HER2-low positivity in these patients is not fully understood. In our retrospective study, we analyzed 647 patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative, node-positive EBC, stratifying them into three cohorts based on axillary lymph node involvement, tumor size, and characteristics.

Patients Offer Radiofrequency Ablation Therapy for Early Breast Cancer as Local Therapy (PO-RAFAELO) Study under the Patient-proposed Health Services.

Introduction: Due to the increase in the number of early-stage breast cancer patients, there is growing interest in minimally invasive local therapies for breast cancer. Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) therapy is one of the most promising minimally invasive treatments. The Radiofrequency Ablation Therapy for Early Breast Cancer as Local Therapy (RAFAELO) study, a multicenter collaborative study that aims to validate the efficacy and safety of RFA and to standardize its use for early-stage breast cancer, was conducted under the Advanced Medical Care B system in 2013.

A prediction model for distant metastasis after isolated locoregional recurrence of breast cancer.

Purpose: The impact of progesterone receptor (PR) status on the prognosis of breast cancer after isolated locoregional recurrence (ILRR) remains unclear. This study evaluated the impact of clinicopathologic factors, including PR status of ILRR, on distant metastasis (DM) after ILRR.

Methods: We retrospectively identified 306 patients with ILRR diagnosed at the National Cancer Center Hospital between 1993 and 2021 from the database.

Clinical significance of tumor cell seeding associated with needle biopsy in patients with breast cancer.

Background/objective: The occurrence of iatrogenic tumor cell seeding (seeding) in needle tract scars formed by core needle biopsy (CNB) or vacuum-assisted biopsy (VAB) is well known. Some risk factors for seeding have been reported, but the clinicopathological risk factors and its prognosis have not been fully investigated. We evaluated the clinical features and prognosis of seeding.

Impact of adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy on tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes and PD-L1 expression in metastatic breast cancer.

Background: Chemotherapy and radiotherapy were postulated to induce an inflamed tumour microenvironment. We aimed to evaluate the effects of adjuvant chemotherapy/radiotherapy on tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression in metastatic breast cancer.

Methods: We identified paired primary and metastatic tumours in 85 patients with breast cancer.

Prognostic significance of microinvasion with ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast: a meta-analysis.

Purpose: Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) associated with invasive carcinoma ≤ 1 mm in size is defined as DCIS with microinvasion (DCIS/microinvasion) rather than as invasive breast carcinoma. The number of patients with microinvasion accounts for < 1% of all breast cancer in published studies. As the numbers are limited, the prognostic significance of DCIS/microinvasion has not been clearly elucidated.

Prediction of tissue-of-origin of early stage cancers using serum miRNomes.

Background: Noninvasive detection of early stage cancers with accurate prediction of tumor tissue-of-origin could improve patient prognosis. Because miRNA profiles differ between organs, circulating miRNomics represent a promising method for early detection of cancers, but this has not been shown conclusively.

Methods: A serum miRNA profile (miRNomes)-based classifier was evaluated for its ability to discriminate cancer types using advanced machine learning.

Development and validation of a pre- and intra-operative scoring system that distinguishes between non-advanced and advanced axillary lymph node metastasis in breast cancer with positive sentinel lymph nodes: a retrospective study.

Background: There are currently no scoring-type predictive models using only easily available pre- and intraoperative data developed for assessment of the risk of advanced axillary lymph node metastasis (ALNM) in patients with breast cancer with metastatic sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs). We aimed to develop and validate a scoring system using only pre- and intraoperative data to distinguish between non-advanced (≤ 3 lymph nodes) and advanced (> 3 lymph nodes) ALNM in patients with breast cancer with metastatic SLNs.

Methods: We retrospectively identified 804 patients with breast cancer (cT1-3cN0) who had metastatic SLNs and had undergone axillary lymph node dissection (ALND).

Single-Cell Transcriptome Profiling Reveals Intratumoral Heterogeneity and Molecular Features of Ductal Carcinoma In Situ.

Unlabelled: Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a precursor to invasive breast cancer. The frequency of DCIS is increasing because of routine mammography; however, the biological features and intratumoral heterogeneity of DCIS remain obscure. To address this deficiency, we performed single-cell transcriptomic profiling of DCIS and invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC).

Clinical significance of discordances in sentinel lymph node reactivity between radioisotope and indocyanine green fluorescence in patients with cN0 breast cancer.

Background: /Objective: To evaluate the usefulness of combining radioisotopes (RI) and indocyanine green (ICG) and investigate discordances in sentinel lymph node (SN) reactivity using each tracer in cN0 breast cancer patients.

Methods: In total, 338 cN0 primary breast cancer patients who underwent SN biopsy with RI and ICG and axillary lymph node (ALN) dissection were included. SN positivity with RI, ICG, and a combination of RI and ICG was denoted as SN(RI), SN(ICG), and SN(RI+ICG), respectively.

Association of L-type amino acid transporter 1 (LAT1) with the immune system and prognosis in invasive breast cancer.

L-type amino acid transporter 1 (LAT1), also referred to as SLC7A5, is believed to regulate tumor metabolism and be associated with tumor proliferation. In invasive breast cancer, we clinicopathologically investigated the utility of LAT1 expression. LAT1 expression was evaluated via immunohistochemistry analyses in 250 breast cancer patients undergoing long-term follow-up.

Preliminary experiences of PET/MRI in predicting complete response in patients with breast cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

Clinical response predictions through image examinations after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for breast cancer is important. The present study aimed to evaluate the utility of a novel imaging modality, positron-emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI), in predicting the pathological complete response (pCR) to NAC in patients with early breast cancer. A total of 74 patients underwent PET/MRI, mammography (MG), including tomosynthesis, and ultrasound (US) after NAC.

Prognostic significance of receptor expression discordance between primary and recurrent breast cancers: a meta-analysis.

Purpose: This meta-analysis aimed to investigate whether receptor (estrogen receptor [ER], progesterone receptor [PR], and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 [HER2]) discordances between primary and recurrent breast cancers affect patients' survival.

Methods: Search terms contained ER, PR, and HER2 status details in both primary and recurrent tumors (local recurrence or distant metastasis) in addition to survival outcome data (overall survival [OS] or post-recurrence survival [PRS]).

Results: Loss of ER or PR in recurrent tumors was significantly associated with shorter OS as compared with receptor-positive concordance (hazard ratio [HR], 1.

Breast Cancer Brain Metastasis-Overview of Disease State, Treatment Options and Future Perspectives.

Breast cancer is the second most common origin of brain metastasis after lung cancer. Brain metastasis in breast cancer is commonly found in patients with advanced course disease and has a poor prognosis because the blood-brain barrier is thought to be a major obstacle to the delivery of many drugs in the central nervous system. Therefore, local treatments including surgery, stereotactic radiation therapy, and whole-brain radiation therapy are currently considered the gold standard treatments.

A case of lymph node dissection for contralateral axillary lymph node metastasis of ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence after identifying the primary lymphatic drainage by lymphoscintigraphy.

We report a case of total mastectomy and contralateral axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) in a patient with ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR) and contralateral axillary lymph node metastasis (ALNM), with lymphoscintigraphy, confirming that the primary lymphatic flow was directed to the contralateral ALNM. The patient in the present case study is a 63-year-old woman. At the age of 46 years, the patient underwent lumpectomy and sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) for left breast cancer.

Predictors of pathological complete response to neoadjuvant treatment and changes to post-neoadjuvant HER2 status in HER2-positive invasive breast cancer.

The response of human epidermal growth factor receptor2 (HER2)- positive breast cancer (BC) patients to anti-HER2 targeted therapy is significant. However, the response is not uniform and a proportion of HER2-positive patients do not respond. This study aims to identify predictors of response in the neoadjuvant treatment and to assess the discordance rate of HER2 status between pre- and post-treatment specimens in HER2-positive BC patients.

Development and Validation of a Preoperative Scoring System to Distinguish Between Nonadvanced and Advanced Axillary Lymph Node Metastasis in Patients With Early-stage Breast Cancer.

Background: It has been determined that axillary lymph node dissection after the detection of limited axillary lymph node metastasis does not improve the prognosis of patients with breast cancer. Thus, a need exists for less-invasive axillary surgery. However, it remains unclear whether a predictive model based on preoperative data would be sufficient to accurately predict the probability of pN2-N3 (> 3 lymph node metastases).