Primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the breast: eight-year follow-up experience.

The objective of this study is to analyze the clinical characteristics and treatment of patients with primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the breast (PNHLB). Forty-five patients with PNHLB treated in our hospital during a 15-year period were retrospectively analyzed. Forty-four were females and one male, with a median age of 47 years. Forty-two patients were at stage I or II and 82.2% had diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Local control rate was 95.2 and 66.7% for patients with and without radiotherapy, respectively (P = 0.020). Median overall survival and progression-free survival (PFS) of all patients was 6.8 and 4.3 years, respectively. For patients with DLBCL or T cell lymphoma, median PFS was 6.5 years with chemoradiation and 3.9 years with chemotherapy or radiation only (P = 0.029). Patients who used rituximab had not reached median PFS, while those treated without rituximab had a median PFS of 5.1 years (P = 0.301). International prognostic index (IPI) score and bilateral breast involvement were two independent prognostic factors for survival. Chinese patients with PNHLB have early occurrence in lifespan. Radiation confers a better local control. Patients with intermediate or high-grade PNHLB might be treated with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and for CD-20 positive disease, rituximab. Bilateral disease and IPI are two prognostic factors.

[Prognosis of primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the breast].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the clinical characteristics and prognosis of primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the breast (PNHLB). METHODS: The characteristics, treatment methods and outcomes of 45 patients with PNHLB were retrospectively analyzed. Chemotherapy including CHOP and CHOP-like regimens was administered in 43 patients, and monoclonal antibody therapy in 6 patients. Furthermore, 19 patients underwent radiotherapy after chemotherapy. RESULTS: Of these 45 patients, 37 patients had diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL), patients with T cell or mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma were 4, respectively. Overall response rate of first-line chemotherapy was 90.7%. Median overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of all patients was 6.82 and 4.25 years, respectively. The results of Cox regression model analysis showed that international prognostic index score (IPI) (RR = 5.682, P = 0.002) and Ann Arbor stage (RR = 1.836, P = 0.040) were negative independent prognostic factors for OS. Central nervous system involvement (RR = 1.107, P = 0.005) was a negative independent prognostic factor for PFS. CONCLUSION: The patients with PNHLB have early occurrence in lifespan. Most pathologic type was DLBCL. IPI and Ann Arbor stage are two independent prognostic factors for survival.

Vinorelbine and capecitabine in anthracycline- and/or taxane-pretreated metastatic breast cancer: sequential or combinational?

PURPOSE: The difference between combinational and pre-planned sequential therapies using regimens that include non-anthracycline and taxane in the first-line setting remains unclear. The purpose of this study is to explore the interaction between vinorelbine (N) and capecitabine (X) in breast cancer cells and to compare the simultaneous or sequential administration of the two drugs in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) as first-line treatment. METHODS: First, we explored the effects of vinorelbine on thymidine phosphorylase (TP) and thymidylate synthase (TS) expression in breast cancer cells. Next, we designed a prospective randomized phase II trial of MBC patients comparing the combinational and pre-planned sequential administration of vinorelbine and capecitabine in the first-line metastatic setting. The primary end point was progression-free survival (PFS). The correlation between clinical characteristics and class III ß-tubulin expression and patient survival was also explored. RESULTS: Vinorelbine upregulates TP and downregulates TS in breast cancer cells, thereby further sensitizing tumor cells to capecitabine, which indicated the proper order for sequential therapy should be N → X. Sixty patients were eligible for the phase II trial. No significant difference was observed between the combinational arm and the sequential arm in terms of progression-free survival (PFS), overall response rate (ORR), and overall survival (OS). Only in the subgroup of patients with liver metastases were median PFS and OS significantly prolonged in the combinational arm (8.5 vs. 6.4 months, P = 0.041 and 23.8 vs. 13.9 months, P = 0.028, respectively). No association between class III ß-tubulin expression and patient outcome was identified. Grade 3/4 adverse events were more common in the combinational arm. CONCLUSIONS: Both the NX regimen and pre-planned sequential N → X regimen are acceptable as first-line treatments with comparable efficacies for MBC patients previously treated with anthracyclines and/or taxanes. Sequential monotherapies are recommended as the preferred approach to first-line chemotherapy for most MBC patients in the absence of an imminent visceral crisis and the need for rapid symptom and/or disease control.