Pembrolizumab response in stage IV luminal-type breast cancer with high microsatellite instability: a case report.

Background: Pembrolizumab (PEM), an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI), is often used for triple-negative breast cancer, but can also be used to treat solid tumors that exhibit high microsatellite instability (MSI-High). However, patients with breast cancer rarely have MSI-High, the use of PEM in such cases in clinical practice is uncertain due to lack of sufficient supporting data. Here, we report the case of a premenopausal woman in who received PEM for MSI-High luminal-type breast cancer.

Response-Guided Omission of Anthracycline in Patients with HER2-Positive Early Breast Cancer Treated with Neoadjuvant Taxane and Trastuzumab: 5-Year Follow-Up of Prognostic Study Using Propensity Score Matching.

Background: De-escalation therapy omitting anthracycline has been generally adopted for patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive early breast cancer in the adjuvant setting, but not in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) setting. We investigated whether anthracycline can be omitted in HER2-positive early breast cancer patients receiving neoadjuvant taxane plus trastuzumab with clinical response.

Methods: HER2-positive primary breast cancer patients treated using NAC containing trastuzumab were enrolled between September 2006 and July 2018 at Osaka Breast Clinic.

C-Reactive Protein and Absolute Lymphocyte Count Can Predict Overall Survival of Patients Treated With Eribulin.

Background/aim: We investigated the efficacy of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), absolute lymphocyte count (ALC), and C-reactive protein (CRP) in predicting overall survival of metastatic breast cancer patients treated with eribulin.

Patients And Methods: Overall, 74 patients treated with eribulin were enrolled and their baseline levels of NLR, ALC, and CRP retrieved. Cutoff values of NLR, ALC, and CRP were set at 3.

Prognostic Significance of Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte Ratio in Luminal Breast Cancers With Low Levels of Tumour-infiltrating Lymphocytes.

Background/aim: This study aimed to improve the prognostic significance of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs).

Patients And Methods: In this retrospective study, NLR and TIL data from 677 operated breast cancer patients were analysed. The cut-off value of NLR was set at 2.

Baseline neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and c-reactive protein predict efficacy of treatment with bevacizumab plus paclitaxel for locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer.

The effect of bevacizumab plus paclitaxel therapy on progression-free survival (PFS) is prominent; however, no overall survival (OS) benefit has been demonstrated. Our aim was to study the predictive efficacy of peripheral immune-related parameters, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), absolute lymphocyte count (ALC), and c-reactive protein (CRP) in locally advanced and metastatic breast cancers. A total of 179 patients treated with bevacizumab plus paclitaxel were recruited from three institutes in the test cohort.

A Single-centre, Retrospective, Observational Analysis of Fulvestrant for Recurrent/metastatic Breast Cancer According to Metastatic Site.

Background/aim: Factors influencing fulvestrant efficacy may be useful in selecting the optimal treatment regimen for postmenopausal Japanese women with metastatic/recurrent HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer.

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively evaluated progression-free and overall survival (PFS and OS) in 100 fulvestrant-treated patients according to metastatic site.

Results: Median PFS was significantly better in patients with non-visceral (bone and regional metastases; 22.

Prognostic significance of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes may differ depending on Ki67 expression levels in estrogen receptor-positive/HER2-negative operated breast cancers.

Background: The prognostic significance of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) has been established in breast cancers with estrogen receptor (ER)-negative and human epithelial growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative or HER2-positive subtypes; however, its utility concerning the ER + /HER2 - subtype remains unclear.

Methods: We evaluated the prognostic value of TILs by analyzing 717 invasive breast cancer operation cases. TILs were classified into three groups based on the proportion of area within the tumor: low ( < 10%), intermediate (10-50%), and high ( > 50%).

Significance of Metabolic Tumor Volume at Baseline and Reduction of Mean Standardized Uptake Value in F-FDG-PET/CT Imaging for Predicting Pathological Complete Response in Breast Cancers Treated with Preoperative Chemotherapy.

Background: The usefulness of F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography for evaluating the treatment efficacy of breast cancers is well-established; however, the predictive values of parameters such as metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG) remain unknown.

Methods: This study examined 199 breast cancers treated with primary systemic chemotherapy (PSC) followed by operation, and determined the values of maximum standardized uptake value (SUV), peak SUV (SUV), mean SUV (SUV), MTV, and TLG at baseline. Among these cases, data on early changes in these metabolic parameters in 70 breast cancers were also assessed.

Significance of baseline neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for progression-free survival of patients with HER2-positive breast cancer treated with trastuzumab emtansine.

The efficacy of trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) is prolonged for some patients; however, the predictive factors remain unknown. We focused on a peripheral blood biomarker, the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), regarding T-DM1 treatment efficacy. Fifty-three advanced or metastatic breast cancers treated with T-DM1 were retrospectively recruited from three institutes.

Improved prognosis of low baseline neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is significantly exclusive in breast cancer patients with high absolute counts of lymphocytes.

Although the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a valuable prognostic factor for early breast cancer, the patient subgroups that may benefit the most from NLR analysis remain unknown. The present study analyzed the prognostic significance of NLR according to absolute lymphocyte counts (ALCs). A total of 889 patients with operated early breast cancers were retrospectively recruited.

Predictive impact of absolute lymphocyte counts for progression-free survival in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive advanced breast cancer treated with pertuzumab and trastuzumab plus eribulin or nab-paclitaxel.

Background: Although peripheral blood-based parameters (PBBPs) are reported as prognostic indicators in patients with breast cancers, their utility has not been studied in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive advanced breast cancer (ABC). Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) might be a predictive factor in patients with HER2-positive ABC treated with pertuzumab and trastuzumab (PT) plus docetaxel. We aimed to evaluate whether PBBPs could have predictive value in HER2-positive ABC treated with pertuzumab and trastuzumab (PT) combined with eribulin (ERI) or nab-paclitaxel (Nab-PTX).

High levels of serum CA15-3 and residual invasive tumor size are associated with poor prognosis for breast cancer patients with non-pathological complete response after neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

Background And Objectives: To identify surrogate markers for prognosis of breast cancer patients with non-pathological complete response (non-pCR) to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC), our investigation focused on the serum levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen (CA15-3) as well as clinicopathological factors both before and after NAC.

Methods: A total of 185 breast cancer patients treated with NAC were recruited. Serum carcinoembryonic antigen and CA15-3 were measured at baseline and at completion of NAC.

Significant Association Between Low Baseline Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio and Improved Progression-free Survival of Patients With Locally Advanced or Metastatic Breast Cancer Treated With Eribulin But Not With Nab-Paclitaxel.

Introduction: Although eribulin and nab-paclitaxel are chemotherapy agents widely used for locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer (MBC), their predictive factors remain unknown. Because the absolute neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a significant prognostic factor for early-stage breast cancer, we investigated its usefulness in terms of the eribulin or nab-paclitaxel treatment efficacy for MBC.

Patients And Methods: A total of 85 patients with MBC treated with eribulin (n = 59) or nab-paclitaxel (n = 26) were recruited.

Frequent downregulation of LRRC26 by epigenetic alterations is involved in the malignant progression of triple-negative breast cancer.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), defined as breast cancer lacking estrogen- and progesterone‑receptor expression and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) amplification, is a heterogeneous disease. RNA-sequencing analysis of 15 TNBC specimens and The Cancer Genome Atlas-TNBC dataset analysis identified the frequent downregulation of leucine-rich repeat-containing 26 (LRRC26), which negatively regulates nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling, in TNBC tissues. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction and bisulfite pyrosequencing analyses revealed that LRRC26 was frequently silenced in TNBC tissues and cell lines as a result of promoter methylation.

Independent prognostic impact of preoperative serum carcinoembryonic antigen and cancer antigen 15-3 levels for early breast cancer subtypes.

Background: Although the prognosis for operable breast cancers is reportedly worse if serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and cancer antigen 15-3 (CA15-3) levels are above normal, the usefulness of this prognosis is limited due to the low sensitivity and specificity; in addition, the optimal cutoff levels remain unknown.

Methods: A total of 1076 patients who were operated for breast cancers (test set = 608, validation set = 468) without evidence of metastasis were recruited, and their baseline and postoperative serum CEA and CA15-3 levels were analyzed. The optimal cutoff values of CEA and CA15-3 for disease-free survival (DFS) were 3.

Prognostic significance of preoperative F-FDG PET/CT for breast cancer subtypes.

Adjuvant treatments for operable breast cancers are determined according to subtypes defined based on estrogen receptor (ER) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status. The ER+/HER2- subtype can be divided into luminal A and luminal B usually by Ki67 expression levels. Although tumor size, lymph node metastasis and tumor grade have been widely accepted in daily clinical practice, the identification of further prognostic indicators especially in the ER+/HER2- subtype is warranted.

Different patterns of change in bone turnover markers during treatment with bone-modifying agents for breast cancer patients with bone metastases.

Background: Bone-modifying agents are effective for treatment of breast cancer patients with bone metastases. Since their action is mediated through suppression of the osteoclast function, their efficacy can be determined by monitoring bone turnover markers. However, the clinical significance of these markers is yet to be compared.

High levels at baseline of serum pyridinoline crosslinked carboxyterminal telopeptide of type I collagen are associated with worse prognosis for breast cancer patients.

It is speculated that adjuvant use of bisphosphonate reduces recurrence in breast cancer patients through suppression of bone resorption. To determine the prognostic impact of bone resorption markers, we investigated serum levels of the pyridinoline crosslinked carboxyterminal telopeptide of type I collagen (1CTP) and N-terminal crosslinking telopeptides of type I collagen (NTX). 1CTP and NTX were measured at baseline (before operation or neoadjuvant therapies) and afterward in 469 patients operated on breast cancer.

Impact of biomarker changes during neoadjuvant chemotherapy for clinical response in patients with residual breast cancers.

Background: Residual cancer burden or Ki67 expression levels in residual tumors reportedly provided significant prognostic information for a non-pathological complete response subset after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC). However, the significance of Ki67 reduction for clinical response during chemotherapy in each subtype or menopausal status is yet to be determined.

Methods: A total of 183 breast cancers surgically removed after chemotherapy were recruited for this study.

Activation of mTOR/S6K But Not MAPK Pathways Might Be Associated With High Ki-67, ER(+), and HER2(-) Breast Cancer.

Unlabelled: We determined the activation of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways in 108 cases of estrogen receptor-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative breast cancer with high and low Ki-67 expression. The expression levels of Ki-67, p53, phosphorylated MAPK (pMAPK), and protein S6 (pS6; downstream molecule of PI3K/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin/S6 kinase pathway) were determined immunohistochemically. pS6 positivity, but not pMAPK positivity, was significantly associated with the high Ki-67 expression subset.

High Ki-67 Expression and Low Progesterone Receptor Expression Could Independently Lead to a Worse Prognosis for Postmenopausal Patients With Estrogen Receptor-Positive and HER2-Negative Breast Cancer.

Unlabelled: We examined the prognostic significance of progesterone receptor (PgR) expression in immunohistochemical-based luminal subtypes defined by Ki-67 expression, taking menopausal status into consideration. The study included 327 surgically removed estrogen receptor-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative breast cancers. High Ki-67 expression (> 15%) and low PgR expression (£ 20%) were significant independent factors resulting in worse distant relapse-free survival.

Prognostic significance of geminin expression levels in Ki67-high subset of estrogen receptor-positive and HER2-negative breast cancers.

Background: Indication for chemotherapy in estrogen receptor (ER)-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative breast cancers is determined on the basis of Ki67 expression level. However, since Ki67-high cancers are not necessarily sensitive to chemotherapy, identification of such patients who do not need chemotherapy is an important issue.

Patients And Methods: We used immunohistochemical staining to examine the expression levels of ER, progesterone receptor (PgR), Ki67, and geminin, a marker of S to G2/M phases, in 80 ER-positive/HER2-negative breast cancers.

Association of body mass index with risk of luminal A but not luminal B estrogen receptor-positive and HER2-negative breast cancer for postmenopausal Japanese women.

Background: The impact of body mass index (BMI) on the risk of postmenopausal estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancers has been well documented. However, the mechanism for the impact of BMI on the etiology of luminal A and luminal B subtypes has not yet been identified.

Methods: We analyzed associations between BMI and breast cancers stratified by immunohistochemically defined intrinsic subtypes, and 1,297 Japanese women (615 breast cancer patients and 682 healthy women from a breast cancer screening program) were enrolled in a case-control study.

C4.4A highly expressed in HER2-positive human breast cancers may indicate a good prognosis.

Background: The aim of our study was to investigate the association of C4.4A expression in breast tumors with both patients' clinicopathological characteristics and outcomes in order to clarify the significance of C4.4A in breast cancer.

Influence of body mass index on clinicopathological factors including estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and Ki67 expression levels in breast cancers.

Background: High body mass index (BMI) is associated not only with a higher incidence of breast cancers but also with poorer prognosis. It is speculated that both enhanced production of estrogens and other factors associated with obesity are involved in these associations, but the biological characteristics associated with high BMI have yet to be thoroughly identified.

Methods: We studied 525 breast cancers, focusing on biological differences between tumors associated with high and low BMI and by immunohistochemically defined intrinsic subtype.