Preoperative ß-Blockade with Propranolol Reduces Biomarkers of Metastasis in Breast Cancer: A Phase II Randomized Trial.

PURPOSE: The majority of deaths from breast cancer occur following the development of metastatic disease, a process inhibited by ß-blockers in preclinical studies. This phase II randomized controlled trial evaluated the effect of preoperative ß-blockade with propranolol on biomarkers of metastatic potential and the immune cell profile within the primary tumor of patients with breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this triple-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial, 60 patients were randomly assigned to receive an escalating dose of oral propranolol (n = 30; 80-160 mg daily) or placebo (n = 30) for 7 days prior to surgery. The primary endpoint investigated the effect of propranolol on prometastatic and proinflammatory gene expression within the primary tumor. RESULTS: Propranolol downregulated primary tumor expression of mesenchymal genes (P = 0.002) without affecting epithelial gene expression (P = 0.21). Bioinformatic analyses implicated downregulation of Snail/Slug (P = 0.03), NF-κB/Rel (P < 0.01), and AP-1 (P < 0.01) transcription factors in structuring the observed transcriptome alterations, and identified changes in intratumoral neutrophil, natural killer cell, and dendritic cell recruitment (all P < 0.01). Patients with clinical evidence of drug response (lowered heart rate and blood pressure) demonstrated elevated tumor infiltration of CD68+ macrophages and CD8+ T cells. CONCLUSIONS: One week of ß-blockade with propranolol reduced intratumoral mesenchymal polarization and promoted immune cell infiltration in early-stage surgically-resectable breast cancer. These results show that ß-blockade reduces biomarkers associated with metastatic potential, and support the need for larger phase III clinical trials powered to detect the impact of ß-blockade on cancer recurrence and survival.See related commentary by Blaes et al., p. 1781.

Perioperative events influence cancer recurrence risk after surgery.

Surgery is a mainstay treatment for patients with solid tumours. However, despite surgical resection with a curative intent and numerous advances in the effectiveness of (neo)adjuvant therapies, metastatic disease remains common and carries a high risk of mortality. The biological perturbations that accompany the surgical stress response and the pharmacological effects of anaesthetic drugs, paradoxically, might also promote disease recurrence or the progression of metastatic disease. When cancer cells persist after surgery, either locally or at undiagnosed distant sites, neuroendocrine, immune, and metabolic pathways activated in response to surgery and/or anaesthesia might promote their survival and proliferation. A consequence of this effect is that minimal residual disease might then escape equilibrium and progress to metastatic disease. Herein, we discuss the most promising proposals for the refinement of perioperative care that might address these challenges. We outline the rationale and early evidence for the adaptation of anaesthetic techniques and the strategic use of anti-adrenergic, anti-inflammatory, and/or antithrombotic therapies. Many of these strategies are currently under evaluation in large-cohort trials and hold promise as affordable, readily available interventions that will improve the postoperative recurrence-free survival of patients with cancer.

Impact of celecoxib on inflammation during cancer surgery: a randomized clinical trial.

PURPOSE: During cancer surgery, prostaglandin-mediated inflammation may promote and activate micrometastatic disease with a consequent increase in long-term cancer recurrence. Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors, known to have anti-proliferative properties, may offset such perioperative perturbation. We investigated the effectiveness of these agents to minimize inflammatory changes during cancer surgery. METHODS: Following ethics approval, 32 patients who were to undergo major intracavity cancer surgery were enrolled in this prospective, randomized, clinical trial. The treatment group received 400 mg celecoxib preoperatively followed by five 200 mg 12-hourly doses. The control group received no anti-inflammatory agents. Inflammatory and immunomodulatory end points were measured serially. The primary end points were the measured plasma and urinary prostaglandin E metabolite (PGEM) levels 48 hours following surgery. Secondary endpoints included interleukin levels, leucocyte profile, and clinical end points. RESULTS: No differences in the 48-hr plasma or urinary PGEM levels were observed between the celecoxib and control groups. Linear mixed modeling, used to accommodate differences in baseline PGEM levels, showed that celecoxib (cf. control) administration lowered plasma PGEM over the entire 48-hr period following surgery (ß-coefficient = -0.38 pg.ml-1; 95% confidence interval: -0.69 to -0.06; P = 0.021). Celecoxib administration also lowered postoperative pain scores. DISCUSSION: Standard dosing of the cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor celecoxib slightly reduced perioperative cyclooxygenase activity during cancer surgery. Given cyclooxygenase's role in cancer pathways, we recommend dose-finding studies be undertaken before prospective clinical trials are conducted testing the currently unsubstantiated hypothesis that perioperative anti-inflammatory administration improves long-term cancer outcomes. This trial was registered at: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry: ACTRN12615000041550; www.anzctr.org.au.

Neuraxial Anesthesia Reduces Lymphatic Flow: Proof-of-Concept in First In-Human Study.

Dilation of lymphatic vessels may contribute to iatrogenic dissemination of cancer cells during surgery. We sought to determine whether neuraxial anesthesia reduces regional lymphatic flow. Using nuclear lymphoscintigraphy, 5 participants receiving spinal anesthesia for brachytherapy had lower extremity lymph flow at rest compared with flow under conditions of spinal anesthesia. Six limbs were analyzed. Four limbs were excluded because of failure to demonstrate lymph flow (1 patient, 2 limbs), colloid injection error (1 limb), and undiagnosed deep vein thrombosis (1 limb). All analyzed limbs showed reduced lymph flow washout from the pedal injection site (range 62%-100%) due to neuraxial anesthesia. Lymph flow was abolished in 3 limbs. We report proof-of-concept that neuraxial anesthesia reduces lymphatic flow through a likely mechanism of sympathectomy.

Chronic stress in mice remodels lymph vasculature to promote tumour cell dissemination.

Chronic stress induces signalling from the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and drives cancer progression, although the pathways of tumour cell dissemination are unclear. Here we show that chronic stress restructures lymphatic networks within and around tumours to provide pathways for tumour cell escape. We show that VEGFC derived from tumour cells is required for stress to induce lymphatic remodelling and that this depends on COX2 inflammatory signalling from macrophages. Pharmacological inhibition of SNS signalling blocks the effect of chronic stress on lymphatic remodelling in vivo and reduces lymphatic metastasis in preclinical cancer models and in patients with breast cancer. These findings reveal unanticipated communication between stress-induced neural signalling and inflammation, which regulates tumour lymphatic architecture and lymphogenous tumour cell dissemination. These findings suggest that limiting the effects of SNS signalling to prevent tumour cell dissemination through lymphatic routes may provide a strategy to improve cancer outcomes.