Prognostic and predictive impact of NOTCH1 in early breast cancer.

Purpose: Systemic therapy plays a major part in the cure of patients with early breast cancer (eBC). However, personalized treatment concepts are required to avoid potentially harmful overtreatment. Biomarkers are pivotal for individualized therapy.

Prognostic Value of Tumour-Infiltrating Lymphocytes in an Unselected Cohort of Breast Cancer Patients.

Tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) are considered to have prognostic and predictive value for patients with early breast cancer. We examined 1166 breast cancer patients from a prospective, multicentre cohort (Prognostic Assessment in Routine Application (PiA), = 1270, NCT01592825) following recommendations from the International TILs Working Group. TIL quantification was performed using predefined groups and as a continuous variable in 10% increments.

PIK3CA-mutations in breast cancer.

Purpose: Phosphatidylinositide-3-kinase (PI3K) regulates proliferation and apoptosis; somatic PIK3CA-mutations may activate these processes. Aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of PIK3CA-mutations in a cohort of early stage breast cancer patients and the association to the course of disease.

Patients And Methods: From an unselected cohort of 1270 breast cancer patients (PiA, Prognostic Assessment in routine application, NCT01592825) 1123 tumours were tested for the three PIK3CA hotspot-mutations H1047R, E545K, and E542K by qPCR.

Identifying High-Risk Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Patients by Molecular Subtyping.

Introduction: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is considered the most aggressive type of breast cancer (BC) with limited options for therapy. TNBC is a heterogeneous disease and tumors have been classified into TNBC subtypes using gene expression profiling to distinguish basal-like 1, basal-like 2, immunomodulatory, mesenchymal, mesenchymal stem-like, luminal androgen receptor (LAR), and one nonclassifiable group (called unstable).

Objectives: The aim of this study was to verify the clinical relevance of molecular subtyping of TNBCs to improve the individual indication of systemic therapy.

Use of social service counseling by cancer patients: an analysis of quality assurance data of 6339 breast cancer patients from 13 certified centers in Germany treated between 2015 and 2017.

Background: Integrated social care may help to mitigate social risk factors in order to achieve more equitable health outcomes. In cancer centers certified according to the criteria set out by the German Cancer Society, every patient must be given low-threshold access to qualified social workers at the center for in-house social service counseling (SSC). Previous analyses have demonstrated large variation in the utilization of these services across individual centers.

Trastuzumab treatment of patients with early, HER2-positive breast cancer in 17 certified German breast cancer centers.

Purpose: Since 2008, guidelines recommend that patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer (BC) should receive adjuvant chemotherapy in combination with trastuzumab in Germany. However, recent studies highlight that a substantial share of patients do not receive trastuzumab. We investigate which patient characteristics are associated with a tumor board recommendation for trastuzumab in Breast Cancer Centers (BCC) certified by the German Cancer Society (DKG) and the German Society for Senology, and if the recommendation differs between BCCs.

[Predictors of the Utilization and Waiting Period Before Starting an Oncological Rehabilitation after Breast Cancer].

Purpose: This study explores the sociodemographic, medical and work-related factors leading to a participation in an in-house rehabilitation measure after primary treatment for breast cancer.

Methods: The prospective multi-center study is based on a written survey with employed breast cancer patients who were recruited at 11 breast cancer centers in Lower Saxony, Germany. Predictors of participation were examined by logistic regression, predictors of the time period before starting the rehabilitation by linear regression.

Specific allelic variants of SNPs in the and genes are associated with earlier tumor onset and progression in Caucasian breast cancer patients.

Background: Genetic factors play a substantial role in breast cancer etiology. Genes encoding proteins that have key functions in the DNA damage response, such as p53 and its inhibitors MDM2 and MDMX, are most likely candidates to harbor allelic variants that influence breast cancer susceptibility. The aim of our study was to comprehensively analyze the impact of SNPs in the , , and genes in conjunction with mutational status regarding the onset and progression of breast cancer.

Proteomic profiling of breast cancer metabolism identifies SHMT2 and ASCT2 as prognostic factors.

Background: Breast cancer tumors are known to be highly heterogeneous and differences in their metabolic phenotypes, especially at protein level, are less well-understood. Profiling of metabolism-related proteins harbors the potential to establish new patient stratification regimes and biomarkers promoting individualized therapy. In our study, we aimed to examine the relationship between metabolism-associated protein expression profiles and clinicopathological characteristics in a large cohort of breast cancer patients.