A molecular approach to triple-negative breast cancer: targeting the Notch signaling pathway

ABSTRACT Introduction Triple-negative breast cancer is an aggressive subtype of breast cancer characterized by the absence of estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 expression. This phenotype renders triple-negative breast cancer cells refractory to conventional therapies, resulting in poor clinical outcomes and an urgent need for novel therapeutic approaches. Recent studies have implicated dysregulation of the Notch receptor signaling pathway in the development and progression of triple-negative breast cancer. Objective This study aimed to conduct a comprehensive literature review to identify potential therapeutic targets of the Notch pathway. Our analysis focused on the upstream and downstream components of this pathway to identify potential therapeutic targets. Results Modulating the Notch signaling pathway may represent a promising therapeutic strategy to treat triple-negative breast cancer. Several potential therapeutic targets within this pathway are in the early stages of development, including upstream (such as Notch ligands) and downstream (including specific molecules involved in triple-negative breast cancer growth). These targets represent potential avenues for therapeutic intervention in triple-negative breast cancer. Comments Additional research specifically addressing issues related to toxicity and improving drug delivery methods is critical for the successful translation of these potential therapeutic targets into effective treatments for patients with triple-negative breast cancer.

Carcinoma de mama triple negativo. Estudio anatomo-estadístico / Triple- negative breast cancer. An anatomical and statistical study

Introducción: El carcinoma de mama triple negativo se asocia a un comportamiento biológico más agresivo y de desfavorable pronóstico. Objetivo: Determinar la incidencia del subtipo molecular triple negativo en carcinomas mamarios y su relación con otras variables clínico-patológicas de valor pronóstico. Método: Se realizó un estudio descriptivo y retrospectivo, en el Hospital Universitario Docente «Celestino Hernández Robau» de Villa Clara, en el período comprendido de enero de 2017 a junio de 2019, con el fin de determinar la incidencia de los tumores triples negativos y su relación con las variables edad, talla tumoral, tipo y grado histológicos e índice de proliferación. Resultados: Se determinó la incidencia del subtipo molecular triple negativo en carcinomas mamarios y su relación con las formas histológicas moderada y poco diferenciadas. Conclusiones: El subtipo molecular triple negativo en carcinomas mamarios está asociado con frecuencia a: la edad posmenopáusica, el tipo histológico ductal, el grado histológico alto, altos índices de Ki-67 y talla tumoral mayor de 2 cm.

Introduction: triple-negative breast cancer has a more aggressive biological behaviour and is associated with an unfavourable prognosis. Objective: to determine the incidence of triple- negative breast cancer molecular subtypes and its relationship with other clinical and pathological variables of prognostic value. Methods: a descriptive and retrospective study was carried out at "Celestino Hernández Robau" University Teaching Hospital from Villa Clara between January 2017 and June 2019 in order to determine the incidence of triple- negative tumors and its relationship with the variables: age, tumor size, histological type and grade as well as proliferative index. Results: the incidence of triple- negative breast cancer molecular subtype and its relationship with moderate and poorly differentiated histological forms were determined. Conclusions: triple- negative breast cancer molecular subtype is frequently associated with postmenopausal age, ductal histological type, high histological grade, high Ki-67 indices and tumor size greater than 2 cm.

Effect of transcription factor NFIB on cell proliferation and invasion in breast cancer / 中国医师杂志

Objective:To investigate the effect of transcription factor nuclear factor IB (NFIB) on cell proliferation and invasion in breast cancer.Methods:The lentivirus pLKO.1-shNFIB plasmid was constructed, packaged and infected with human estrogen receptor positive (ER + ) breast cancer cell line MCF-7 and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cell line MDA-MB-231, respectively, NFIB was stably knocked down and verified by Western blot method; Cell count test (CCK-8) and clone formation test were used to investigate the effect of knockdown NFIB on the growth and proliferation of breast cancer cells; The transwell experiment and Western blot method were performed to detect the expression of epithelial mesenchymal transition protein markers. The effect of knockdown NFIB on the invasive ability of triple-negative breast cancer cells was explored; Kaplan-Meier survival was used to analyze web data (http: //kmplot.com/analysis/) to explore the effect of NFIB on the prognosis of ER + breast cancer and triple-negative breast cancer patients. Results:In MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells, knocking down NFIB inhibited cell growth and proliferation; In triple-negative breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells, knocking down NFIB promoted the expression of interstitial marker fibronectin and promoted cell invasion; The lower the expression of NFIB, the worse the prognosis of triple negative breast cancer patients, while the expression of NFIB had no effect on the prognosis of ER + breast cancer patients. Conclusions:Knocking down NFIB inhibits the proliferation of MCF-7 cells, and the expression level of NFIB is not related to the prognosis of ER + breast cancer patients; Knocking down NFIB inhibits the proliferation of MDA-MB-231 cells but promotes their invasion; The low expression of NFIB is associated with the poor prognosis of triple-negative breast cancer patients.

Research progress of p53 protein in the development mechanism of triple negative breast cancer / 中国医师杂志

Tumor suppressor gene p53 plays an important role in regulating cell cycle, controlling apoptosis and repairing damaged DNA. Mutation of this gene is closely related to the occurrence, development and drug resistance of various tumors. The mutant p53 protein is closely related to the growth and metastasis of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) with higher malignancy and higher risk of metastasis. This paper expounds the mechanism of p53 protein participating in the occurrence, development and metastasis of TNBC, introduces the effect of interfering with mouse dual-microbody gene 2 (MDM2), activated T cell nuclear factor 1 (NFAT1) and other proteins on p53, as well as small molecular targeted drugs closely related to p53 protein, and provides a new direction and theoretical basis for targeted treatment of TNBC.

Expression and relationship of miR-379 and human kinesin like family member 4A in triple-negative breast cancer / 中国医师杂志

Objective:To analyze the expression and relationship of miR-379 and human kinesin family member 4A (KIF4A) in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).Methods:A total of 52 patients diagnosed with TNBC in breast department at Puji Branch of Dongguan People′s Hospital between January 2016 and November 2019 were retrospectively selected as the study group. Meanwhile, 70 patients with non-triple-negative breast cancer (NTNBC) diagnosed in the same period were selected as the control group. The expression levels of miR-379 and KIF4A in both groups were detected. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn, and the area under the curve (AUC) of miR-379 and KIF4A predicting TNBC was calculated; The relationship between the expression levels of miR-379 and KIF4A and clinicopathological parameters, and the correlation between the expression level of miR-379 and KIF4A were analyzed.Results:The expression level of KIF4A in study group was higher than that in control group [(6.93±0.43) vs (3.75±0.25), P<0.05], and the expression level of miR-379 in study group was lower than that in control group [(0.54±0.17) vs (0.87±0.32), P<0.05]. MiR-379 combined with KIF4A expression had the greatest diagnostic value for TNBC: AUC 0.823 (95% CI: 0.730- 0.917), specificity 0.785, sensitivity 0.950; Univariate analysis showed that there were significant difference in the expression of miR-379 in TNBC patients with different clinical stages, tumor diameter, and lymph node metastasis (all P<0.05); There were significant difference in the expression of KIF4A in TNBC patients with different clinical stages and tumor diameter (all P<0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that miR-379 expression was negatively correlated with KIF4A expression in TNBC ( r=-0.349, P<0.05). Conclusions:The expression of miR-379 is down-regulated, while the expression of KIF4A is up-regulated in patients with TNBC. The two are related to poor clinicopathological characteristics, which indicates that they can be used for condition evaluation of the patients.

Progress in the treatment of triple negative breast cancer with sacituzumab govitecan / 国际肿瘤学杂志

Triple-negative breast cancer is a subtype of invasive breast cancer, accounting for about 15% of all breast cancers. Its clinical treatment is relatively difficult, prone to recurrence and metastasis, with a short median survival and poor prognosis. Sacituzumab govitecan is the first approved antigen-coupled drug targeting trophoblast surface antigen 2 in the world. It has significant clinical efficacy, high safety and less adverse reactions, which brings new hope to the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer.

Research progress on the mechanism of CDK4/6 inhibitors promoting antitumor immunity by regulating the immune microenvironment of triple negative breast cancer / 国际肿瘤学杂志

Triple negative breast cancer is a subtype of breast cancer with poor prognosis and lack of effective treatment. Cyclin dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 inhibitors promote antitumor immunity by influencing the triple negative breast cancer immune microenvironment, such as increasing the tumor cell surface pragrammed death-ligand 1 protein expression, enhancing T cell activation and antigen presentation, changing the proportion of T cell subgroup and inducing lymphocyte infiltration. The change of immune microenvironment is related to tumor progression, but its mechanism is extremely complex. Exploring the mechanism of CDK4/6 inhibitor affecting immune microenvironment and its biomarkers can provide a new direction for the diagnosis and treatment of triple negative breast cancer.

Carcinoma mamario RH negativo en el Hospital Clínico Quirúrgico Docente Celestino Hernández Robau / Rh negative breast carcinoma at the Teaching Clinic Surgical Hospital Celestino Hernandez Robau

RESUMEN Introducción: El carcinoma mamario negativo a la expresión de receptores hormonales (RH negativo) incluye los subtipos moleculares Her-2/neu y triple negativo, asociados ambos a una mayor actividad biológica del tumor y un pronóstico desfavorable. Objetivo: Determinar la incidenciade los carcinomas triples negativos y Her-2/neu en carcinomas mamarios y su relación con variables clínico-patológicas de valor pronóstico. Métodos: Se realizó unestudio descriptivo, de corte transversal, en el Hospital Celestino Hernández, Villa Clara, entre enero de 2017 a junio de 2019. Se incluyeron 293 mujeres con diagnóstico de carcinoma de mama infiltrante, a cuyas biopsias se les realizó estudio inmunohistoquímico determinando la incidencia de los subtipos moleculares triple negativo y Her2/neu y su relación con otras variables de valor pronóstico. Resultados: En la serie se determinó la incidencia de los subtipos moleculares triples negativo y Her2/neu. En ambos subtipos moleculares, más de las dos terceras partes de las pacientes fueron mayores de 50 años, presentaron tallas tumorales mayor de 2 cm en el momento del diagnóstico y tuvieron histología ductal. Destaca además la relación de ambos subtipos moleculares con formas histológicas moderada y pobremente diferenciadas del carcinoma mamario. De igual forma, en ambos subtipos, el índice de proliferación determinado por Ki67 fue alto en más de las dos terceras partes de las pacientes estudiadas. Conclusiones: La edad posmenopáusica, el tipo histológico ductal, el grado histológico alto, el alto índice de Ki67 y la talla tumoral mayor de 2 cm se asocian con frecuencia a subtipos moleculares del carcinoma mamario negativos a receptores hormonales.

ABSTRACT Introduction: The breast carcinoma which is negative to the expression of hormonal receptors (negative RH) includes the molecular subtypes Her2/neu and triple negative, that are both associated to higher biological activity and a worse forecast. Objective: To determine the real incidence of the subtypes triple negative and Her2/neu in breast carcinoma and its correlation with prognostic value clinic-pathological variables. Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was done in the Hospital Celestino Hernández, Villa Clara, from January 2017 to June 2019. It was included 293 women with diagnosis of infiltrating breast carcinoma, whose biopsies were studied by immunohistochemistry, determining the incidence of the molecular subtypes triple negative and overexpression of Her-2 and its correlation with others prognostic value variables. Results: In the series it was determined the incidence of the molecular subtypes triple negative and Her2/neu. In both molecular subtypes more two third of patients were older than 50 years old, had tumor size larger than 2 cm at the moment of diagnosis and had ductal histology. The correlation of the both molecular subtypes with moderately and poorly histological types of breast carcinoma stands out. In the same way the proliferation index determined by Ki67 was high in more two third of the studied patients. Conclusions: The post-menopausal age, the ductal histologic type, high histologic grade, high index of Ki67 and tumor size larger than 2 cm are often associated to molecular subtypes of breast carcinomas which are negative to the expression of hormonal receptors.

Hematological ratios as prognostic indicators in patients with triple-negative breast cancer in southern Brazil

Introduction: The heterogeneous nature and intrinsically aggressive tumor pathology of the triple negative breast cancer subtype results in an unfavorable prognosis and limited clinical success. The use of hematological components of the systemic inflammatory response for patients with triple-negative breast cancer can add important prognostic information to the criteria traditionally used for cancer patients, since inflammation can promote tumor progression support by affecting the stages of tumorigenesis. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the hematological parameters neutrophil/lymphocyte, monocyte/lymphocyte and platelet/lymphocyte ratios as prognostic indicators in patients with triple-negative breast cancer. Methods: This was a singlecenter retrospective observational study in an oncology referral hospital in the South region of Brazil. Electronic medical records of patients diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer from 2012 to 2016 were reviewed and analyzed using SPSS. Results: The low blood cell ratio groups had significantly higher overall survival than the high blood cell ratio groups. Univariate analysis also confirmed the correlation of patients in the high blood cell ratio groups with unfavorable results. Conclusions: Hematological components of the systemic inflammatory response are promising prognostic indicators. More studies on the subject should be carried out to assist in future medical decision-making so these parameters of easy assessment and low cost can be introduced in clinical practice.

Triple negative breast cancer originating from a cystic lesion

Malignant neoplasm diagnosed after radiological evaluation of a simple breast cyst is rare. This report described the case of a young patient with an initial simple cystic lesion, whom, in 18-month follow-up examinations, showed a change in the imaging pattern of the cyst, and underwent biopsy, where a triple negative carcinoma was identified. In addition, the diagnosis occurred during pregnancy, which makes the present report even rarer.

Efficacy and survival outcomes of dose-dense carboplatin plus paclitaxel as neoadjuvant chemotherapy for triple-negative breast cancer / 中华肿瘤杂志

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and survival outcomes of dose-dense (biweekly) carboplatin plus paclitaxel (PC) as neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), and to explore an optimal neoadjuvant chemotherapy regimen for TNBC. Methods: Patients diagnosed as TNBC(cT1-4N0-3M0) in Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College Between January 2008 and September 2018 who received dose-dense PC and standard 3-weekly PC as NAC were 1∶1 matched using propensity score matching (PSM) to compare the efficacy, safety and survival outcomes. Results: One hundred of TNBC patients were enrolled (50 patients were divided in dose-dense group, 50 patients in standard group). The objective response rate (ORR) of dose-dense group and standard group were both 90.0% (45/50). The grade 3-4 neutropenia in dose-dense group was less than that of standard group (32.7% vs. 68.0%, P=0.001), while the rate of ALT/AST elevation in dose-dense group was higher than that of standard group (57.1% vs. 32.0%, P=0.012). The pathological complete response (pCR) rates were 34.0% (17/50) in dose-dense group and 38.0% (19/50) in standard group, without statistically significance (P=0.677). The median follow-up time was 55 months (3-150 months). The 5-year recurrence-free survival (RFS) in dose-dense group and standard group were 83.5% and 75.2%, respectively the 5-year overall survival (OS) in dose-dense and standard group were 87.9% and 84.5% the difference were not statistically significant (P=0.322 and 0.647, respectively). Patients with residual disease (tumor size≥1 cm or lymph node positive) had poor prognosis, the 5-year RFS and OS were 59.3% and 68.5%, respectively. Conclusions: Dose-dense PC has similar efficacy with standard 3-weekly PC and has a good safety profile. Since dose-dense regimen can shorten the duration of therapy, it can be an alternative in TNBC.

Prognostic factors in triple-negative breast cancer: a retrospective cohort

SUMMARY OBJECTIVE: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is characterized by lack of estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression and accounts for 15-20% of all breast cancers. This study aims to analyze prognostic factors related to a reduction in overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and risk of mortality and recurrence in TNBC. METHODS: This is a retrospective observational cohort study. Medical records of 532 patients with breast cancer diagnosed from 2007 to 2020 were analyzed. Of these patients, 93 (17%) were women with TNBC. Ten medical records were excluded, and the final sample was composed of 83 women with TNBC. OS and DFS were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier model. Univariate analysis (log-rank test) and multivariate analysis (Cox regression) were used to examine prognostic factors related to a statistically significant reduction (p<0.05) in OS and DFS and increased risk of mortality and tumor recurrence. RESULTS: Smoking, advanced clinical stage, larger tumor size, angiolymphatic invasion, positive sentinel lymph node, axillary node involvement, higher cancer burden, surgical treatment with mastectomy, and recurrence were related to a significant decrease in OS and/or DFS and increased risk of mortality and/or recurrence in TNBC. The 10-year OS and DFS was around 61 and 65%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Advanced clinical stage, positive sentinel lymph node, axillary node involvement, surgical treatment with mastectomy, and higher residual cancer burden were related to a significant reduction in OS and DFS and increased risk of mortality and recurrence in TNBC.

Metaplastic breast carcinoma: series of cases and literature review

Introduction: Metaplastic breast carcinoma is a heterogeneous group of infrequent invasive carcinomas with aggressive behavior. It presents differentiation from the neoplastic ductal epithelium to squamous and/or sarcomatous mesenchymal component, through the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process, and may present morphology of epithelioid and fusiform cells, with possible cartilage, bone, lipomatous, fibromatous, smooth muscle or skeletal muscle differentiation, among others. Most of the cases present the triple-negative immunohistochemical profile. Objective: To report three cases of metaplastic carcinomas, with an emphasis on clinical and pathological aspects, in addition to conducting a literature review on this topic. Methods: The three cases were registered in the internal search system for reference services in breast pathology in São Paulo, between 2012 and 2019. For literature review, the keywords metaplastic carcinoma, breast, cancer, review, breast cancer subtype and pathological and clinical outcomes were used in PubMed. We found 154 articles, of which 42 were selected for full reading, based on the abstract and established inclusion criteria. After this initial selection, these articles were read and reviewed; nine articles that did not meet the inclusion criteria were excluded. Discussion: Three cases of metaplastic carcinoma with similar immunohistochemical characteristics have been reported. The first case is that of a 40-year-old patient with the diagnosis of metaplastic carcinoma producing a chondroid matrix with liposarcomatous and osteosarcomatous differentiation. The second case is that of a 50-year-old patient who presented with the final diagnosis for a fusocellular metaplastic carcinoma with lymph node metastasis. Finally, the third case described is that of a 59-year-old patient, who presented metaplastic carcinoma with chondroid differentiation. Conclusion: Metaplastic carcinoma is a rare and aggressive type of breast cancer, in which most of the patients have shorter survival and worse prognosis in relation to the other subtypes. More studies are needed in order to determine a gold standard treatment for this disease.

Adenoid cystic carcinoma of the breast: case report

Adenoid cystic carcinoma (AdCC) of the breast is an uncommon invasive lobular neoplasm whose morphology is similar to the homonymous tumor of salivary glands and with a peculiar behavior toward the "triple-negative" (TN) profile. Tumors belonging to this family do not immunohistochemically express three of the main prognostic biomarkers and tend to show a more aggressive behavior. However, this rare histological pattern of breast cancer is generally associated with good prognosis. In this study, the authors describe the case of a 49-year-old woman diagnosed with this rare malignant tumor and who underwent breast-conserving surgery. Recent studies have aimed to understand the genes, genetic alterations, and etiological aspects related to the still obscure etiopathogenesis of AdCC. Thus, morphological and molecular aspects relevant to AdCC and reported in the literature will be discussed.

Pathogenic variants in BRCA1/2 genes among patients with triple-negative breast cancer: a case series

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an uncommon molecular subtype (representing 15%­20% of breast cancers) characterized by the non-expression of estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth receptor factor 2. More aggressive and lethal, TNBC is often associated with pathogenic variants in BRCA1/2 genes. This study aimed to describe a series of seven cases of patients with TNBC and pathogenic variants in BRCA1/2 genes. All patients were female and under 50 years of age at diagnosis. Four of them presented a family history of breast cancer and/or other neoplasms. The predominant clinical stage was IIB, and the main anatomopathological stage was pT2pN0M0. The mean tumor size in the series was 2.5 cm (1.0 to 3.2 cm). Ki-67 was > 30% in all patients. Three cases (43%) had pathological complete response, and only one presented extensive residual disease after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Six patients showed pathogenic variants in BRCA1 (86%) and one in BRCA2+ (14%). After a mean follow-up of 38 months (19 to 68 months), five patients were alive and without neoplastic disease, and two progressed to metastasis.

O Estado da Arte da Imunoterapia no Tratamento do Câncer de Mama Triplo-Negativo: Principais Drogas, Associações, Mecanismos de Ação e Perspectivas Futuras / The State-of-the-Art of Immunotherapy in the Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Treatment: Main Drugs, Combinations, Mechanisms of Action and Future Perspectives / El Estado del Arte de la Inmunoterapia en el Tratamiento del Cáncer de Mama Triple Negativo: Principales Fármacos, Asociaciones, Mecanismos de Acción y Perspectivas de Futuro

Introdução: O câncer de mama é o mais comumente diagnosticado em mulheres e uma das principais causas de morte por câncer em mulheres em todo o mundo. Apesar, ou talvez por causa, de sua natureza agressiva e da falta de tratamentos direcionados atuais, pesquisas clínicas e laboratoriais significativas estão fornecendo opções de tratamento diferenciadas. Historicamente, a quimioterapia tem sido a única opção viável de tratamento sistêmico para doenças precoces e avançadas. No entanto, ensaios clínicos publicados recentemente mostraram que a imunoterapia tem um papel importante no paradigma de tratamento dessa condição devastadora. Objetivo: Demonstrar o estado da arte da imunoterapia no tratamento do câncer de mama triplo-negativo. Método: Revisão integrativa de literatura, entre janeiro/2020 a março/2020, a partir das bases de dados PubMed, SciELO, InternationalClinical Trials Registry Platform e LILACS, por meio dos descritores "Imunoterapia", "Neoplasias da mama" e "Neoplasias de mama triplo negativas" e seus respectivos correspondentes em inglês. Resultados: Foram encontrados 465 artigos; destes, 457 foram excluídos após aplicação dos critérios metodológicos. Assim, restaram oito artigos que atendiam aos critérios de inclusão, demonstrando os principais agentes terapêuticos utilizados, mecanismos de ação e combinações terapêuticas. Encontraram-se 25 ensaios clínicos em andamento na plataforma de registro de ensaios clínicos InternationalClinical Trials Registry Platform. Conclusão: Embora a imunoterapia seja algo recente, seus resultados com agentes inibidores da PARP, PD-1 e PD-L1 demonstraram resultados satisfatórios. Novos ensaios com subgrupos estratificados de acordo com biomarcadores tumorais específicos são necessários, a fim de avaliar se algum subgrupo tem maior benefício ao tratamento.

Introduction: Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women and is one of the leading causes of death from cancer in women worldwide. Despite, or perhaps because of its aggressive nature and current lack of targeted treatments, significant basic research and clinical trials are being conducted to provide new treatment options. Historically, chemotherapy has been the only viable systemic treatment option for early and advanced diseases. However, recently published clinical trials have shown that immunotherapy plays an important role in the treatment paradigm of this devastating clinical condition. Objective: To demonstrate the state-of-the-art results of immunotherapy in the treatment of triple-negative breast cancer. Method:An integrative literature review was carried out between January/2020 and March/2020, in PubMed, SciELO, International Clinical Trials Registry Platform and LILACS databases, using the keywords "Immunotherapy", "Breast Cancer", and "Triple Negative Breast Cancer" and its respective correspondents in Portuguese. Results: 465 articles were found; of those, 457 were excluded after applying the methodological criteria. Thus, 8 articles that met the inclusion criteria, showing the main therapeutic agents used, mechanisms of action and therapeutic combinations, remained. 25 clinical trials were found in progress on the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform. Conclusion: Although immunotherapy is somewhat recent, its results with PARP, PD-1 and PD-L1 inhibitors have shown satisfactory results. New trials with subgroups stratified according to specific tumor biomarkers are needed in order to assess if some subgroups have greater benefit to treatment.

Introducción: El cáncer de mama es el más comúnmente diagnosticado en las mujeres y es una de las principales causas de muerte por cáncer en mujeres de todo el mundo. A pesar de, o quizás debido a su naturaleza agresiva y la falta de tratamientos dirigidos actuales, investigaciones clínicas y de laboratorio significativas están proporcionando opciones de tratamiento diferenciadas. Históricamente, la quimioterapia ha sido la única opción viable para el tratamiento sistémico de enfermedades tempranas y avanzadas. Sin embargo, los ensayos clínicos publicados recientemente han demostrado que la inmunoterapia desempeña un papel importante en el paradigma del tratamiento de esta condición devastadora. Objetivo: Demostrar el estado del arte de la inmunoterapia en el cáncer de mama triple negativo. Método: Revisión integradora entre enero/2020 y marzo/2020, utilizando las bases de datos PubMed, SciELO, InternationalClinical Trials Registry Platform y LILACS, empleando las palabras clave "Inmunoterapia", "Cáncer de mama" y "Cáncer de mama triple negativo" y los respectivos términos en inglés. Resultados: Se encontraron 465 artículos; de estos, 457 fueron excluidos después de aplicar los criterios metodológicos. Así, quedaron 8 artículos que cumplían los criterios, que mostraban los principales agentes terapéuticos utilizados, mecanismos de acción y combinaciones terapéuticas. Se encontraron 25 ensayos clínicos en progreso en la plataforma InternationalClinical Trials Registry Platform. Conclusión: Aunque la inmunoterapia es algo reciente, sus resultados con inhibidores de PARP, PD-1 y PD-L1 han mostrado resultados satisfactorios. Se necesitan nuevos ensayos con subgrupos estratificados según biomarcadores tumorales específicos para evaluar si algún subgrupo tiene un mayor beneficio.

Progress of programmed death-1/programmed death-ligand 1 inhibitors in treatment of triple-negative breast cancer / 肿瘤研究与临床

Breast cancer is the malignant tumor with the highest incidence among women in the worldwide. The triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has the strongest immunogenicity. Because of the lack of clear molecular targets, TNBC is a subtype of breast cancer with more difficulties in the treatment and poorer prognosis compared to other breast cancer subtypes. Blocking the programmed death-1 (PD-1)/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) signaling pathway has been a hot spot of research and treatment of tumors. PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors provide new treatment options for TNBC. This article reviews the research progress of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors alone or in combination with other drugs in treatment of TNBC, intending to provide the theoretical basis for basic or clinical studies.

Factores de riesgo modificables del cáncer de mama: una comparación entre mujeres menores y mayores de 40 años / Modifiable risk factors for breast cancer: a comparison between women younger and older than 40 years-old

Resumen OBJETIVO: Analizar la repercusión diferencial de los principales factores de riesgo modificables asociados con el cáncer de mama en pacientes menores y mayores de 40 años. MATERIALES Y MÉTODOS: Estudio de cohorte, retrospectivo, observacional y descriptivo. Se reunió la información de las pacientes con diagnóstico o tratamiento de cáncer de mama atendidas en un centro hospitalario del Noreste de México entre enero de 2016 y diciembre de 2017. La asociación entre las distintas variables y los grupos etarios se determinó con la prueba de la χ2 de Pearson y se consideraron estadísticamente significativos los valores con p < 0.05. RESULTADOS: Se revisaron 524 expedientes clínicos de pacientes con cáncer de mama, con límites de edad entre 22 y 99 y se seleccionaron las menores de 40 años (n = 75) que representaron 14.31% del total de las pacientes atendidas, porcentaje que coincide con la prevalencia de cáncer de mama en mujeres jóvenes reportada en la bibliografía mexicana. Se encontró un efecto similar en el riesgo de padecer cáncer de mama entre ambos grupos con los siguientes factores de riesgo modificables: nuliparidad, tabaquismo, consumo de alcohol, sedentarismo y anticoncepción hormonal. La obesidad (IMC superior a 30) tuvo mayor repercusión en mujeres de más de 40 años. CONCLUSIÓN: La prevalencia de cáncer de mama en las pacientes jóvenes fue del doble de lo reportado en el ámbito internacional. Es necesario el control de peso en mujeres menores de 40 años, que permita reducir la incidencia del cáncer de mama triple negativo en esta población. Asimismo, se recomienda el control de los otros factores de riesgo modificables porque, aunque no parecen afectar significativamente a las mujeres jóvenes, su control tiene una repercusión positiva en la prevención del cáncer de mama en todos los grupos etarios.

Abstract OBJECTIVE: To analyze the differential impact of the main modifiable risk factors associated with breast cancer among patients younger than 40 years of age. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cohort, retrospective, observational and descriptive study. The information of the patients with diagnosis or treatment of breast cancer treated in a hospital in Northeast Mexico between January 2016 and December 2017 was collected. The association between the different variables and the age groups was determined with the test of Pearson's χ2 and the values p < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: 524 clinical records of patients with breast cancer were reviewed, with age limits between 22 and 99 years. From this group, patients under 40 years of age (n = 75) were selected, representing 14.31% of the total number of patients treated, a percentage that coincides with the prevalence of breast cancer in young women reported in the Mexican literature. A similar impact was found on the risk of breast cancer between both groups with the following modifiable risk factors: nulliparity, smoking, alcohol consumption, sedentary lifestyle and hormonal contraception. Obesity (BMI ≥ 30) had a greater impact on women ≥ 40 years. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of breast cancer in young patients was double what was reported internationally. Weight control is necessary in women under 40 years of age, which allows reducing the incidence of triple negative breast cancer in this population. Likewise, the control of the other modifiable risk factors is recommended because, although they do not seem to significantly affect young women, their control has a positive impact on the prevention of breast cancer in all age groups.

Analysis of Tau Protein Expression in Predicting Pathological Complete Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Different Molecular Subtypes of Breast Cancer / 한국유방암학회지

PURPOSE: Tau is a microtubule-associated protein that can be found in both normal and abnormal breast cells. Whether the expression of Tau protein can predict the response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) is still unclear. In this study, we assessed the role of Tau protein expression in predicting a pathological complete response (pCR) to NACT for different subtypes of breast cancer.METHODS: Four hundred and sixty-eight eligible patients were retrospectively recruited in our study. The relationship between clinicopathologic factors, including Tau protein expression, and pCR in different subtypes was evaluated using logistic regression analysis. Correlation between Tau and disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was performed using Kaplan–Meier analysis.RESULTS: The expression of Tau protein was negatively correlated with pCR, especially in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). No significant difference was observed in the luminal human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2)-negative subtype and HER2-positive subtype. Patients with pCR were associated with better DFS and OS (p < 0.05). However, Tau protein expression had no association with either DFS or OS (p > 0.05).CONCLUSION: Tau protein expression can predict pCR before NACT in TNBC, but there was no correlation between Tau expression and DFS or OS.

Accuracy of breast magnetic resonance imaging in evaluating the response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy: a study of 310 cases at a cancer center / Acurácia da ressonância magnética das mamas na avaliação da resposta a quimioterapia neoadjuvante: estudo de 310 casos em um centro oncológico

Abstract Objective: To evaluate the accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the breasts in the identification of a pathological complete response in patients with breast cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC). Materials and Methods: This was a single-center, retrospective, observational study designed to validate a diagnostic test. The following variables were evaluated: age; results of the histological and immunohistochemical analysis of the biopsy; post-NAC MRI findings; and results of the histological analysis of the surgical specimen, using the residual cancer burden index. The radiological response, as assessed by MRI, was compared with the pathological response, as assessed by histological analysis of the surgical specimen (the gold standard method). Results: We evaluated 310 tumors in 308 patients. The mean age of the patients was 47 years (range, 27-85 years). For identifying a pathological complete response, breast MRI had an overall accuracy of 79%, with a sensitivity of 75%, specificity of 83%, positive predictive value of 75%, and negative predictive value of 83%. When that accuracy was stratified by molecular subtype, it was best for the HER2 subtype, with a sensitivity and specificity of 82% and 89%, respectively, followed by the triple-negative subtype, with a sensitivity and specificity of 78% and 83%, respectively. Conclusion: Breast MRI showed good accuracy in the prediction of a pathological complete response after NAC. The sensitivity and positive predictive value were highest for the HER2 and triple-negative subtypes.

Resumo Objetivo: Avaliar a acurácia da ressonância magnética (RM) das mamas na identificação de resposta patológica completa em pacientes com câncer de mama submetidas a quimioterapia neoadjuvante (QTN). Materiais e Métodos: Teste de validação diagnóstica, realizado por meio de estudo observacional, unicêntrico e retrospectivo. As variáveis avaliadas no estudo foram idade, resultado histológico e imuno-histoquímico da biópsia, análise da RM após QTN e análise histológica da peça cirúrgica, com cálculo do índice residual cancer burden. Os resultados da resposta radiológica pela RM foram comparados com a resposta patológica na peça cirúrgica (padrão ouro). Resultados: Foram incluídos 310 tumores de 308 pacientes com média de idade de 47 anos (variação: 27 a 85 anos). A acurácia da RM foi 79%, com sensibilidade de 75%, especificidade de 83%, valor preditivo positivo de 75% e valor preditivo negativo de 83%. Estratificando-se por subtipo molecular, a detecção da resposta patológica pela RM obteve os melhores porcentuais de acerto no subtipo HER2 superexpresso, com sensibilidade e especificidade de 82% e 89%, respectivamente, seguido do subtipo triplo negativo, com sensibilidade e especificidade de 78% e 83%, respectivamente. Conclusão: A RM demonstrou boa acurácia na predição de resposta patológica completa após QTN. A sensibilidade e o valor preditivo positivo foram mais altos nos subtipos triplo negativo e HER2 superexpresso.