Risk-adapted modulation through de-intensification of cancer treatments: an ESMO classification.

BACKGROUND: The landscape of clinical trials testing risk-adapted modulations of cancer treatments is complex. Multiple trial designs, endpoints, and thresholds for non-inferiority have been used; however, no consensus or convention has ever been agreed to categorise biomarkers useful to inform the treatment intensity modulation of cancer treatments. METHODS: An expert subgroup under the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Precision Medicine Working Group shaped an international collaborative project to develop a classification system for biomarkers used in the cancer treatment de-intensification, based on a tiered approach. A group of disease-oriented clinical, translational, methodology and public health experts, and patients' representatives provided an analysis of the status quo, and scanned the horizon of ongoing clinical trials. The classification was developed through multiple rounds of expert revisions and inputs. RESULTS: The working group agreed on a univocal definition of treatment de-intensification. Evidence of reduction in the dose-density, intensity, or cumulative dose, including intermittent schedules or shorter treatment duration or deletion of segment(s) of the standard regimens, compound(s), or treatment modality must be demonstrated, to define a treatment de-intensification. De-intensified regimens must also portend a positive impact on toxicity, quality of life, health system burden, or financial toxicity. ESMO classification categorises the biomarkers for treatment modulation in three tiers, based on the level of evidence. Tier A includes biomarkers validated in prospective, randomised, non-inferiority clinical trials. The working group agreed that in non-inferiority clinical trials, boundaries are highly dependent upon the disease scenario and endpoint being studied and that the absolute differences in the outcomes are the most relevant measures, rather than relative differences. Biomarkers tested in single-arm studies with a threshold of non-inferiority are classified as Tier B. Tier C is when the validation occurs in prospective-retrospective quality cohort investigations. CONCLUSIONS: ESMO classification for the risk-guided intensity modulation of cancer treatments provides a set of evidence-based criteria to categorise biomarkers deemed to inform de-intensification of cancer treatments, in risk-defined patients. The classification aims at harmonising definitions on this matter, therefore offering a common language for all the relevant stakeholders, including clinicians, patients, decision-makers, and for clinical trials.

Early participant-reported symptoms as predictors of adherence to anastrozole in the International Breast Cancer Intervention Studies II.

Background: Anastrozole reduces breast cancer risk in women at high risk, but implementing preventive therapy in clinical practice is difficult. Here, we evaluate adherence to anastrozole in the International Breast Cancer Intervention Study (IBIS)-II prevention and ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) trials, and its association with early symptoms. Patients and methods: In the prevention trial, 3864 postmenopausal women were randomized to placebo versus anastrozole. A total of 2980 postmenopausal women with DCIS were randomized to tamoxifen versus anastrozole. Adherence to trial medication was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and all P-values were two-sided. Results: In the prevention trial, adherence was 65.8% [anastrozole (65.7%) versus placebo (65.9%); HR = 0.97 (0.87-1.09), P = 0.6]. Adherence was lower for those reporting arthralgia in the placebo group (P = 0.02) or gynecological symptoms in the anastrozole group (P = 0.003), compared with those not reporting these symptoms at 6 months. In the DCIS study, adherence was 66.7% [anastrozole (67.5%) versus tamoxifen (65.8%); HR = 1.06 (0.94-1.20), P = 0.4]. Hot flashes were associated with greater adherence in the anastrozole arm (P = 0.02). In both studies, symptoms were mostly mild or moderately severe, and adherence decreased with increasing severity for most symptoms. Drop-outs were highest in the first 1.5 years of therapy in both trials. Conclusions: In the IBIS-II prevention and DCIS trials, over two-thirds of women were adherent to therapy, with no differences by treatment groups. Participants who reported specific symptoms in the IBIS-II prevention trial had a small but significant effect on adherence, which strengthened as severity increased. Strategies to promote adherence should target the first year of preventive therapy.

Factors affecting uptake and adherence to breast cancer chemoprevention: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Preventive therapy is a risk reduction option for women who have an increased risk of breast cancer. The effectiveness of preventive therapy to reduce breast cancer incidence depends on adequate levels of uptake and adherence to therapy. We aimed to systematically review articles reporting uptake and adherence to therapeutic agents to prevent breast cancer among women at increased risk, and identify the psychological, clinical and demographic factors affecting these outcomes. DESIGN: Searches were carried out in PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE and PsychInfo, yielding 3851 unique articles. Title, abstract and full text screening left 53 articles, and a further 4 studies were identified from reference lists, giving a total of 57. This review was prospectively registered with PROSPERO (CRD42014014957). RESULTS: Twenty-four articles reporting 26 studies of uptake in 21 423 women were included in a meta-analysis. The pooled uptake estimate was 16.3% [95% confidence interval (CI) 13.6-19.0], with high heterogeneity (I(2) = 98.9%, P < 0.001). Uptake was unaffected by study location or agent, but was significantly higher in trials [25.2% (95% CI 18.3-32.2)] than in non-trial settings [8.7% (95% CI 6.8-10.9)] (P < 0.001). Factors associated with higher uptake included having an abnormal biopsy, a physician recommendation, higher objective risk, fewer side-effect or trial concerns, and older age. Adherence (day-to-day use or persistence) over the first year was adequate. However, only one study reported a persistence of ≥ 80% by 5 years. Factors associated with lower adherence included allocation to tamoxifen (versus placebo or raloxifene), depression, smoking and older age. Risk of breast cancer was discussed in all qualitative studies. CONCLUSION: Uptake of therapeutic agents for the prevention of breast cancer is low, and long-term persistence is often insufficient for women to experience the full preventive effect. Uptake is higher in trials, suggesting further work should focus on implementing preventive therapy within routine care.

Identifying clinically relevant prognostic subgroups of postmenopausal women with node-positive hormone receptor-positive early-stage breast cancer treated with endocrine therapy: a combined analysis of ABCSG-8 and ATAC using the PAM50 risk of recurrence score and intrinsic subtype.

BACKGROUND: In the adjuvant treatment of hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer, variables like tumour size, grade and nodal status have great impact on therapy decisions. As most node-positive patients with HR+ breast cancer currently receive adjuvant chemotherapy improved methods for characterization of individuals' metastasis risk are needed to reduce overtreatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Tissue specimens from node-positive patients of the ABCSG-8 and ATAC trials who received adjuvant tamoxifen and/or anastrozole were included in this study. Analysing RNA from paraffin blocks using the PAM50 test, the primary objective was to evaluate the prognostic information of the risk of recurrence (ROR) score added to combined clinical standard variables in patients with one positive node (1N+) and in patients with two or three positive nodes (2-3N+), using log-likelihood ratio tests. RESULTS: At a median follow-up of 9.6 years, distant metastases occurred in 97 (18%) of 543 node-positive patients. In a multivariate analysis, the PAM50-derived ROR score provided reliable prognostic information in addition to and beyond established clinical factors for 1N+ (P < 0.0001) and 2-3N+ patients (P = 0.0002). Ten-year distant recurrence risk was significantly increased in the high-risk compared with the low-risk group derived from ROR score for 1N+ [25.5%, 95% confidence interval (CI) 17.5% to 36.1%versus 6.6%, 95% CI 3.3% to 12.8%] and compared with the combined low/intermediate risk group for 2-3N+ patients (33.7%, 95% CI 25.5% to 43.8% versus 12.5%, 95% CI 6.6% to 22.8%). Additionally, the luminal A intrinsic subtype (IS) exhibited significantly lower risk of distant recurrence compared with the luminal B subtype in 1N+ and 2-3N+ patients. CONCLUSION: PAM50 ROR score and IS can identify node-positive patient subgroups with limited risk of metastasis after endocrine therapy, for whom adjuvant chemotherapy can be spared. The PAM50 test is a valuable tool in determining treatment of node-positive early-stage breast cancer patients.

The effect of behavioural risk factors on osteoporosis in Irish women.

BACKGROUND: Osteoporosis constitutes a major public health concern and its underlying pathogenesis is complex and multifactorial. Although hereditary factors strongly contribute to bone health, behavioural factors can modulate the genetically determined pattern of skeletal modelling and remodelling. AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect(s) of behavioural risk factors on osteoporosis in Irish women. METHODS: Pre- and post-menopausal adult women (n = 189; 44 ± 15 years) participated in this cross-sectional study. Demographic, anthropometric and lifestyle data were collected during a single clinic visit. Dietary calcium intake and lifetime physical activity (PA) were assessed for each subject. Lumbar and femoral bone mineral density (BMD) was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Multivariate analysis was used to determine the independent predictors of low BMD. RESULTS: Low BMD was present in 59% of subjects (42% pre- and 77% post-menopausal). Smoking was the strongest behavioural predictor of lumbar and femoral BMD. Age, height, family history, smoking, metabolic (MET) and mechanical (MECH) PA (lifetime) and weight (body mass) accounted for 39% of the variance in lumbar BMD. Age, height, family history, alcohol consumption, MET and MECH PA (lifetime) and weight accounted for 41% of the variance in femoral BMD. CONCLUSIONS: Prevalence of osteopenia and osteoporosis is high in Irish women and is associated with modifiable risk factors. A clearer focus should be paid to educate Irish women on preventative health behaviours for osteoporosis to curb the prevalence of this disease and the human and fiscal costs associated with it.

Relationships between CYP2D6 phenotype, breast cancer and hot flushes in women at high risk of breast cancer receiving prophylactic tamoxifen: results from the IBIS-I trial.

BACKGROUND: Several studies have reported discordant results regarding the impact of the CYP2D6 phenotype on both the effectiveness and the degree of endocrine symptoms associated with tamoxifen. Other studies have suggested that menopausal symptoms may be a predictive factor to tamoxifen response. METHODS: We investigated the relationship between the CYP2D6-predicted phenotype and tamoxifen response in a nested case-control study among women from the International Breast cancer Intervention Study (IBIS-I), which evaluated tamoxifen in the preventive setting. RESULTS: In this retrospective analysis of the tamoxifen-treated women in the IBIS-I study, 9 women (16.6%) who developed oestrogen receptor-positive invasive breast cancer had a 2D6 poor or intermediate metaboliser phenotype compared with 45 (20.6%) controls. Adjusted matched logistic regression revealed no significant difference between cases and controls for extensive vs intermediate metaboliser phenotype (OR=0.81 (0.30-2.23), P=0.7) or extensive vs poor metaboliser phenotype (OR=1.02 (0.31-3.32), P=0.9). Controls in the tamoxifen group with a poor metaboliser phenotype developed nonsignificantly fewer hot flushes compared with those with an extensive metaboliser phenotype (OR=0.40 (0.12-1.31)), but those with the intermediate phenotype developed nonsignificantly more hot flushes (OR=1.38 (0.58-3.29)) in an unadjusted analysis. CONCLUSION: Data from the preventive IBIS-I study did not support an association between the CYP2D6 phenotype and breast cancer outcome or the development of endocrine symptoms in tamoxifen-treated women.