Endocrine therapy or chemotherapy as first-line therapy in hormone receptor-positive HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: For hormone receptor-positive (HR+) human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2-) negative metastatic breast cancer (MBC), international guidelines recommend endocrine therapy as first-line treatment, except in case of 'visceral crisis'. In the latter case, chemotherapy is preferred. Few studies have compared these two strategies. We used the Epidemiological Strategy and Medical Economics (ESME) programme, UNICANCER, a large national observational database (NCT03275311), to address this question. METHODS: All patients who initiated treatment for a newly diagnosed HR+ HER2-negative MBC between January 2008 and December 2014 in any of the 18 French Comprehensive Cancer Centers participating to ESME were selected. Patients should be aromatase inhibitor (AI)-sensitive (no previous AI or relapse occurring more than 1 year after last adjuvant AI). Objectives of the study were evaluation of progression-free and overall survival (OS) according to the type of first-line treatment adjusted on main prognostic factors using a propensity score. RESULTS: Six thousand two hundred sixty-five patients were selected: 2733 (43.6%) received endocrine therapy alone, while 3532 (56.4%) received chemotherapy as first-line therapy. Among the latter, 2073 (58.7%) received maintenance endocrine therapy. Median OS was 60.78 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 57.16-64.09) and 49.64 months (95% CI, 47.31-51.64; p < 0.0001) for patients receiving endocrine therapy alone and chemotherapy ± maintenance endocrine therapy, respectively. However, this difference was not significant after adjusting on the propensity score (hazard ratio: 0.943, 95% CI 0.863-1.030, p = 0.19). CONCLUSION: In this large retrospective cohort of patients with AI-sensitive metastatic luminal BC, OS was similar, whether first-line treatment was chemotherapy or endocrine therapy. In agreement with international guidelines, endocrine therapy should be the first choice for first-line systemic treatment for MBC in the absence of visceral crisis.

5-year overall survival after early breast cancer diagnosed during pregnancy: A retrospective case-control multicentre French study.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer diagnosed during pregnancy (BCP) is rare, but the prevalence is expected to rise. Long-term follow-up data regarding this clinically challenging condition are scarce. The main objective of this multicentre case-control French study was to compare the survival between pregnant patients and matched controls. METHODS: Patients from 27 centres diagnosed between 2000 and 2009 with histologically proven invasive breast cancer occurring during pregnancy were retrospectively included. Controls were matched to BCP patients on age, clinical T stage, hormone receptor, HER2, administration of neo-adjuvant chemotherapy and pathological node involvement in the absence of neo-adjuvant chemotherapy. Five-year overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS) and metastasis-free survival (MFS) rates were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: One hundred and eleven BCP patients and 253 controls were included. Median age was 33 and 35 years, respectively. Both populations were managed similarly, except for less frequent sentinel node dissection (p = 0.026) and taxane administration (p = 0.03) among BCP patients. Median follow-up was 7.5 years. Survival rates were similar between both BCP and control patients: 5-year OS rates were 83.1% (95% CI: 74.5-89.0) vs 85.5% (95% CI: 80.4-89.4), respectively, p = 0.31; 5-year DFS rates 60.0% (95% CI: 50.1-68.6) vs 68.5% (95% CI: 62.3-73.9), respectively, p = 0.12 and 5-year MFS rates 71.0% (95% CI: 61.3-78.6) and 74.5% (95% CI: 68.6-79.5), respectively, p = 0.21. CONCLUSION: Our study showed that the survival outcomes of patients diagnosed with BCP were not significantly different as compared to those of matched non-pregnant controls. A proper management of women diagnosed with BCP is crucial.

Prospective evaluation of serum anti-Müllerian hormone dynamics in 250 women of reproductive age treated with chemotherapy for breast cancer.

AIM: Women of reproductive age with breast cancer generally receive gonadotoxic chemotherapy. Fertility issues are of great concern for them. However, little is known on ovarian damage during chemotherapy and its evolution during long-term follow-up. The aim of this study was to provide a detailed description of serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) evolution during chemotherapy and 24-month follow-up. METHODS: This prospective cohort study was conducted in 250 patients, aged 18-39 years, diagnosed with breast cancer and treated with adjuvant/neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Each patient underwent blood AMH measurement at each chemotherapy cycle, and at 6, 12 and 24 months after chemotherapy. Menses occurrence was also recorded. RESULTS: Mean basal AMH level was 4.19 ± 4.84 ng/mL, and was negatively correlated with age. Serum AMH level rapidly decreased in all patients after each chemotherapy cycle to undetectable levels in most of them, and slowly increased in 45% of the patients during the 24-month follow-up. AMH decrease was significantly associated with age and basal AMH level, but not with cyclophosphamide dose and tamoxifen use. The prevalence of chemotherapy-related amenorrhoea was 92.4% at the end of chemotherapy; women with amenorrhoea being significantly older and having lower basal AMH than women who resumed menses. CONCLUSIONS: Our study confirms rapid and deep ovarian reserve alteration in young women receiving chemotherapy for breast cancer, and shows moderate AMH recovery in some patients. Although AMH cannot alone predict fertility potential, these new data emphasise the need for post-treatment ovarian insufficiency follow-up, strongly support the use of fertility preservation strategies and may provide new tools for improved counselling.

Final efficacy and updated safety results of the randomized phase III BEATRICE trial evaluating adjuvant bevacizumab-containing therapy in triple-negative early breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this analysis was to assess the long-term impact of adding bevacizumab to adjuvant chemotherapy for early triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). METHODS: Patients eligible for the open-label randomized phase III BEATRICE trial had centrally confirmed triple-negative operable primary invasive breast cancer (pT1a-pT3). Investigators selected anthracycline- and/or taxane-based chemotherapy for each patient. After definitive surgery, patients were randomized 1:1 to receive ≥4 cycles of chemotherapy alone or with 1 year of bevacizumab (5 mg/kg/week equivalent). Stratification factors were nodal status, selected chemotherapy, hormone receptor status, and type of surgery. The primary end point was invasive disease-free survival (IDFS; previously reported). Secondary outcome measures included overall survival (OS) and safety. RESULTS: After 56 months' median follow-up, 293 of 2591 randomized patients had died. There was no statistically significant difference in OS between treatment arms in either the total population (hazard ratio 0.93, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.74-1.17; P = 0.52) or pre-specified subgroups. The 5-year OS rate was 88% (95% CI 86-90%) in both treatment arms. Updated IDFS results were consistent with the primary IDFS analysis. Five-year IDFS rates were 77% (95% CI 75-79%) with chemotherapy alone versus 80% (95% CI 77-82%) with bevacizumab. From 18 months after first study dose to study end, new grade ≥3 adverse events occurred in 4.6% and 4.5% of patients in the two arms, respectively. CONCLUSION: Final OS results showed no significant benefit from bevacizumab therapy for early TNBC. Late-onset toxicities were rare in both groups. Five-year OS and IDFS rates suggest that the prognosis for patients with TNBC is better than previously thought. CLINICALTRIALS.GOV: NCT00528567.

Paclitaxel plus bevacizumab or paclitaxel as first-line treatment for HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer in a multicenter national observational study.

BACKGROUND: Bevacizumab combined with paclitaxel as first-line chemotherapy for patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer (MBC) has led to mixed results in randomized trials, with an improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) but no statistically significant overall survival (OS) benefit. Real-life data could help in assessing the value of this combination. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study aimed to describe the outcome following first-line paclitaxel with or without bevacizumab in the French Epidemiological Strategy and Medical Economics (ESME) database of MBC patients, established in 2014 by Unicancer. The primary and secondary end points were OS and PFS, respectively. RESULTS: From 2008 to 2013, 14 014 MBC patient files were identified, including 10 605 patients with a HER2-negative status. Of these, 3426 received paclitaxel and bevacizumab (2127) or paclitaxel (1299) as first-line chemotherapy. OS adjusted for major prognostic factors was significantly longer in the paclitaxel and bevacizumab group compared with paclitaxel [hazard ratio (HR) 0.672, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.601-0.752; median survival time 27.7 versus 19.8 months]. Results were consistent in all supportive analyses (using a propensity score for adjustment and as a matching factor for nested case-control analyses) and sensitivity analyses. Similar results were observed for the adjusted PFS, favoring the combination (HR 0.739, 95% CI 0.672-0.813; 8.1 versus 6.4 months). CONCLUSIONS: In this large-scale, real-life setting, patients with HER2-negative MBC who received paclitaxel plus bevacizumab as first-line chemotherapy had a significantly better OS and PFS than those receiving paclitaxel. Despite robust methodology, real-life data are exposed to important potential biases, and therefore, results need to be treated with caution. Our data cannot therefore support extension of current use of bevacizumab in MBC.

Evaluate the subjective experience of the disease and its treatment in the partners of young women with non-metastatic breast cancer.

The impact of the disease experience on the quality of life of the relatives of patients with cancer is now well documented. However, few scales specifically address the partners' subjective quality of life. This study aims to validate a questionnaire assessing the impact of cancer on the quality of life of the partners of young women with breast cancer. Partners (n = 499) of women aged <45 when diagnosed with a non-metastatic breast cancer completed a self-reported questionnaire generated from non-directive interviews led in an initial study. The structure of the scale was examined by exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Internal consistency, test-retest reliability and concurrent validity were assessed. The final Partner-YW-BCI contained 36 items and assessed eight dimensions of the subjective experience of partners: (1) feeling of couple cohesion, (2) negative affectivity and apprehension about the future, (3) body image and sexuality, (4) career management, (5) deterioration of the relationships with close relatives, (6) management of child(ren) and of everyday life, (7) financial difficulties, and (8) sharing and support from close relatives. The scale showed adequate psychometric properties, and will help clinicians to identify the problems of partners and to respond to them by an optimal care management.

The subjective experience of young women with non-metastatic breast cancer: the Young Women with Breast Cancer Inventory.

BACKGROUND: The subjective experience of young women with breast cancer has some particular features linked to the impact of the disease and its treatment on their age-related issues (e.g. desire for a child, couple relationship, career management). Despite these specific concerns, no questionnaire currently targets the young breast cancer patient's quality of life, subjective experience or common problems when facing cancer. This study presents the psychometric validation of an inventory that aimed to measure the impact of breast cancer on the quality of life of young women (<45 years of age) with non-metastatic disease. METHODS: 546 women aged <45 years when diagnosed with a non-metastatic breast cancer were recruited in 27 French cancer research and treatment centers. They answered a self-reported questionnaire created from verbatim collected by non-directive interviews carried out with 69 patients in a first qualitative study. Exploratory and confirmatory analyses were conducted in order to obtain the final structure of the scale. Internal consistency, test-retest reliability and concurrent validity with quality of life questionnaires currently used (QLQ-C30 and the QLQ-BR23 module) were then assessed. RESULTS: The YW-BCI36 contains 36 items and highlights 8 factors: 1) feeling of couple cohesion, 2) negative affectivity and apprehension about the future, 3) management of child(ren) and of everyday life, 4) sharing with close relatives, 5) body image and sexuality, 6) financial difficulties, 7) deterioration of relationships with close relatives, and 8) career management. Psychometric analyses indicated good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha values ranging from 0.76 to 0.91) and temporal reliability (Bravais-Pearson correlations ranging from 0.66 to 0.85). As expected, there were quite strong correlations between the YW-BCI36 and the QLQ-C30 and QLQ-BR23 scores (r ranging from 0.20 to -0.66), indicating adequate concurrent validity. CONCLUSIONS: The YW-BCI36 was confirmed as a valid scale for evaluating the subjective experience of breast cancer in young women. This instrument could help to identify the problems of these women more precisely, in order to respond to them better by an optimal care management. This scale may improve the medical, psychological and social care of breast cancer patients.

Role of physical activity and sport in oncology: scientific commission of the National Federation Sport and Cancer CAMI.

This overview reports published data about the interaction between physical activity and sport during and after cancer on one hand and improvement in psychological parameters, survival and biological mechanisms underlying this effect on the other hand. Practising physical activity and sport during cancer modifies parameters assessing fatigue and quality of life and reduces symptoms of depression. An association also exists between the practise of physical activity and sport and overall and cancer-specific survivals, especially after breast cancer, colon cancer and prostate cancer. These benefits seem to be mediated by a modification of circulating levels of estrogens, insulin, IGF-1 and by a decrease in insulin-resistance, by alterations in the secretion of adipokines, and by a reduction in chronic inflammation through decreased levels of cytokines. There exist some obstacles to the practise of physical activity. These obstacles are mainly related to a fear of pain induced by physical activity and to overweight. These programmes of physical activity and sport cannot be offered to all patients since there are several contra-indications, with some being present since the initial visit and others appearing during cancer management either due to disease progression or related to iatrogenic effects. Whereas benefits from physical activity and sport among cancer patients seem obvious, there are still several pending clinical and biological issues.

Multicentric neoadjuvant phase II study of panitumumab combined with an anthracycline/taxane-based chemotherapy in operable triple-negative breast cancer: identification of biologically defined signatures predicting treatment impact.

BACKGROUND: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a heterogeneous group of tumors for some of which the epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR) pathway may play an important role. We investigated the efficacy and toxicity of an anti-EGFR antibody (panitumumab) combined with a standard neoadjuvant anthracycline-taxane-based chemotherapy in patients with operable, stage II-III, TNBC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Treatment in this multicentric neoadjuvant pilot study consisted of panitumumab (9 mg/kg) for eight cycles q.3 weeks combined with four cycles of 5-fluorouracil, epidoxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (FEC100: 500/100/500 mg/m(2)) q.3 weeks, followed by four cycles of docetaxel (T: 100 mg/m(2)) q.3 weeks. Following therapy, all patients underwent surgical resection. Pathologic complete response (pCR) in assessable patients was the main end point while clinical response, toxicity and ancillary studies were secondary end points. Paraffin-embedded and frozen tumor samples were systematically collected with the aim to identify predictive biomarkers of efficacy and resistance in order to select biologically defined subpopulations for potential further clinical development of the anti-EGFR antibody. RESULTS: Sixty patients were included with 47 assessable for pathologic response. The pCR rates were 46.8% [95% confidence interval (CI): 32.5% to 61.1%] and 55.3% [95% CI: 41.1% to 69.5%] according, respectively, to Chevallier and Sataloff classifications. The complete clinical response (cCR) rate was 37.5%. Conservative surgery was carried out in 87% of cases. Toxicity was manageable. The association of high EGFR and low cytokeratin 8/18 expression in tumor cells on one hand and high density of CD8+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes on the other hand were significantly predictive of pCR. CONCLUSIONS: Panitumumab in combination with FEC100 followed by docetaxel appears efficacious, with acceptable toxicity, as neoadjuvant therapy of operable TNBC. Several biomarkers could help define large subsets of patients with a high probability of pCR, suggesting a potential interest to further develop this combination in biologically defined subgroups of patients with TNBC. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: NCT00933517.

A retrospective case series of 103 consecutive patients with leptomeningeal metastasis and breast cancer.

Approximately 2-5 % of patients with breast cancer (BC) develop leptomeningeal metastasis (LM). 103 consecutive patients with BC were diagnosed with LM and initially treated with intra-CSF liposomal cytarabine from 2007 to 2011 at a single institution. Correlations were determined with respect to patient characteristics and BC subtype with regard to overall survival (OS). At LM diagnosis, 61 % of patients had a 0-2 performance status (PS), the remaining 39 % were severely neurologically impaired. Regardless of PS, all patients received intra-cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) liposomal cytarabine as first-line treatment. Systemic treatment and radiotherapy were also given in 58 and 17 % of patients respectively as clinically appropriate. Second- (intra-CSF thiotepa) and third-line (intra-CSF methotrexate) treatment was administered in 24 and 6 patients respectively. Median OS was 3.8 months (range 1 day-2.8 years). In multivariate analysis, an initial combined treatment, a second-line treatment with intra-CSF thiotepa, an initial clinical response, and a non-'ER/PR/HER2 negative' BC were significantly associated with a better OS. Median OS in this heterogeneous retrospective case series was similar to that of previously observed BC patients treated with intra-CSF methotrexate suggesting intra-CSF liposomal cytarabine is a reasonable first choice therapy of BC-related LM.

Phase I study of lapatinib plus vinorelbine in patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer overexpressing HER2.

BACKGROUND: To determine the recommended doses of lapatinib (LPT) combined with vinorelbine (VNR) in women with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-overexpressing advanced breast cancer pretreated with trastuzumab. METHODS: In this phase I study, women were treated with oral daily LPT and i.v. VNR infused on days 1 and 8 every 3 weeks. Dose levels (DL) of LPT (mg)/VNR (mg m(-2)) ranged from 750/20 to 1250/30. The primary end point was feasibility based on maximal tolerated dose (MTD) and maximum administered dose (MAD). Pharmacokinetic interactions were investigated. RESULTS: Of 33 patients included, 29 were evaluable. Two DLT occurred at DL4 (1000/25) meeting the MAD criteria. Despite an additional intermediate DL3' (1250/22.5), MTD was reached at DL3 (1000/22.5). Grade 3-4 neutropenia was the most common toxicity (34% and 38% of patients, respectively). Other significant toxicities included grade 3-4 diarrhoea (3% each), and grade 3 asthenia (10%). Although not statistically significant, LPT (at 1000 or 1250 mg) decreased the VNR clearance by 30-40% compared with DL1. CONCLUSION: The MTD LPT 1000 mg/VNR 22.5 mg m(-2) (DL3) is recommended for additional development. Pharmacokinetic interactions might increase the exposure to VNR and consequently alter the hematological tolerance.

Long-term follow-up of HER2-overexpressing stage II or III breast cancer treated by anthracycline-free neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND: Very effective trastuzumab-based primary systemic therapy (PST) can be proposed for conservative surgery purpose to human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer (HER2+BC). Long-term follow-up (LTFU) warrants further data. PATIENTS AND METHODS: LTFU of patients, with stage II/III HER2+BC, treated by trastuzumab associated with docetaxel (Taxotere(®)) and/or carboplatin used as anthracycline-free PST was studied. RESULTS: Among 135 patients, with a median follow-up of 48.3 months [95% confidence interval (CI) 45.3-52.4 months], the relapse-free survival (RFS) rate was 73.2% (95% CI 63.76% to 80.55%) while the overall survival (OS) rate was 91.87% (95% CI 84.23% to 95.90%). Adjuvant trastuzumab favorably influenced RFS in univariate analysis while the pathological nodal invasion unfavorably influenced RFS [Cox multivariate analysis (hazard ratio = 2.80, 95% CI 1.36-5.76, P = 0.0052)] and OS. Cardiac toxicity was minor (2.2% transient, reversible asymptomatic decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction). CONCLUSION: This is the first report of LTFU showing that anthracycline-free trastuzumab-based PST combined either with docetaxel and/or carboplatin can achieve, without cardiac toxicity, very competitive results in terms of pathological complete response, RFS and OS, in HER2+BC. The choice of this schedule could be proposed to patients with vascular contraindication for anthracyclines or because patient's or physician's preference for a taxane-only schedule.

[Assessing the quality of life of young women and their partners: a pertinent approach to the study of breast cancer]. / Pertinence d'évaluer la qualité de vie des femmes jeunes et de leur partenaire en sénologie.

Over the past twenty years, oncology has taken into account the study of patient's quality of life. This article offers a review of the quality of life questionnaires that are currently being used in cancerology: QLQC-30 and its modules, FLIC, FACT-G and its modules, BIS, SF-36. Among these evaluation tools, two questionnaires which have been validated in French can be used to evaluate the quality of life of women suffering from breast cancer: QLQBR-23 and FACT-B. However, these two questionnaires target the quality of life of women suffering from breast cancer in general without taking into account the specific characteristics of these women and their past experiences; such as their age or their family's situation. It seems important to study which topics could be specific to young women at the time of diagnosis (education or desire for a child [ren], couple relationship, professional life), all of which are important issues for women in this situation. Besides, there appears to be no questionnaire which specifically evaluates the partner's quality of life, even though he is frequently the first source of support for these women. Directions for future research will be suggested based on the necessity of having specific measures of the quality of life of the young woman suffering from breast cancer and her partner. Such a tool could be useful in a clinical setting within the context of the care of these young women with particular profiles.

Pre-operative systemic (neo-adjuvant) therapy with trastuzumab and docetaxel for HER2-overexpressing stage II or III breast cancer: results of a multicenter phase II trial.

BACKGROUND: Trastuzumab plus chemotherapy has become the standard of care for women with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive metastatic breast cancer. Trastuzumab-based pre-operative systemic (neo-adjuvant) therapy (PST) also appears promising, warranting further investigation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with HER2-positive, stage II/III non-inflammatory, operable breast cancer requiring a mastectomy (but who wished to conserve the breast) received weekly trastuzumab and 3-weekly docetaxel for six cycles before surgery. The primary end point was pathological complete response (pCR) rate, determined from surgical specimens. RESULTS: Thirty-three patients were enrolled. The majority (79%) had T2 tumors, with 42% being N1/2. Twenty-nine patients completed six cycles of therapy and one patient withdrew prematurely due to progressive disease. A complete or partial objective clinical response was seen in 96% (73% and 23%, respectively) of patients. Surgery was performed in 30 patients, breast conserving in 23 (77%). In an intention-to-treat analysis, tumor and nodal pCR was seen in 14 (47%) patients. Treatment was generally well tolerated. Grade 3/4 neutropenia occurred in 85% of patients while febrile neutropenia was encountered in 18%. Only three patients withdrew prematurely due to toxicity. No symptomatic cardiac dysfunction was reported. CONCLUSIONS: PST with trastuzumab plus docetaxel achieved promising efficacy, with a high pCR rate and good tolerability, in women with stage II or III HER2-positive breast cancer.

Age as a prognostic factor in breast cancer.

We retrospectively analysed data from 1751 patients with non-metastatic and non-inflammatory breast cancer treated in our institution between 1977 and 1989, in order to evaluate the link between age and prognosis in breast cancer. We chose three age groups (1): < or = 33 (n = 67), 34-40 ( n = 155), > 40 years (n = 1529). There were no significant differences in the distribution of clinical tumor size (T), histological node status (N), histology of the primary-tumor and progesterone receptor levels (PR). Younger patients had a higher proportion of SBR III (p < 0.0001), and of Estradiol Receptor negative tumors (EP). There was a significant difference between the three groups in terms of overall survival (p < 0.035), breast cancer specific survival (p < 0.0001) and relapse-free survival (p < 0.0002). Younger patients had a significantly poorer prognosis (survival and relapse) than older ones. Multivariate analysis of specific survival demonstrated that young age at diagnosis was a poor independent prognostic factor.

Prognostic value of p53 and urokinase-type plasminogen activator in node-negative human breast cancers.

We measured the levels of p53 and urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) in 634 tumor tissues from 634 different node-negative primary breast cancer patients who underwent locoregional surgery in the Center Oscar Lambret between July 1989 and September 1994. p53 and uPA were assayed using commercially available kits in cytosols prepared for estradiol receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PgR) assays. The optimum clinical thresholds were chosen for prognostic studies: 4 ng/ml for p53 and 0.5 ng/ml for uPA. p53 was elevated in 13.7% of the tumors, and uPA was elevated in 27.5% of the tumors; they were negatively related (chi 2 test) to ER and PgR and positively related to histoprognostic grading (HPG) and tumor diameter. uPA was negatively correlated to ER and PgR, and p53 and uPA were positively correlated to each other (P = 0.0001; Spearman test). In the prognostic studies, the 316 patients who did not receive adjuvant chemotherapy were included to avoid treatment interference; this number corresponds to all of the patients operated on between 1989 and 1992. The mean duration of follow-up of living patients was 4 years. In overall survival studies, Cox univariate analyses demonstrated a prognostic value of p53 (P = 0.011; risk ratio, 1.59), uPA (P = 0.038; risk ratio, 2.32), PgR, HPG, and tumor diameter. In Cox multivariate analyses, only HPG had a statistically significant prognostic value. In relapse-free survival studies, univariate analyses demonstrated prognostic values of uPA (P = 0.0011) and of age, and both parameters retained their prognostic value in multivariate analyses (uPA: P = 0.0004). This study demonstrates not only that p53 and uPA have prognostic value but also that these two parameters are linked to other classical clinical, histological, or biological prognostic parameters, as well as to each other. Moreover, because uPA is of prognostic value in multivariate relapse-free survival studies, uPA is an important prognostic factor in node-negative breast cancer patients.

Ineffectiveness of sequential high dose methotrexate and 5-fluorouracil combined with epirubicin (FEMTX regimen) as a salvage therapy in advanced colorectal cancers and other gastrointestinal tumors.

The combination of sequential high dose methotrexate and 5-fluorouracil (FU) combined with epirubicin (FEMTX regimen) has shown some clinical efficiency as a first line therapy in advanced gastric cancer. We evaluated the therapeutic activity of this combination in advanced colorectal cancer patients who failed the FU + folinic acid regimen, and in advanced gastrointestinal cancer situation where no standard regimen is available. Twelve patients with measurable metastatic colorectal cancer refractory to first line (n = 6) or second line (n = 6) chemotherapy, as well as 9 patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancer, entered this pragmatic pilot study. Eighty-six per cent and 38% of the patients experienced severe haematological or non-haematological toxicities, respectively. Four patients were not evaluable for response due to their early departure from the scheme due to acute toxic events (n = 3) or toxic death (n = 1). No objective response was observed, but 9 stabilisations and 8 progressive diseases were noted. The FEMTX regimen is not of clinical value as a salvage therapy in colorectal and gastrointestinal cancer, because of its toxicity and its lack of efficacy.

Does induction chemotherapy with a mitoxantrone/vinorelbine regimen allow a breast-conservative treatment in patients with operable locoregional breast cancer? A French Northern Oncology Group trial in 105 patients. French Northern Oncology Group.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, induction chemotherapy has been tested by several investigators in the management of operable breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Our current study was aimed to evaluate, pragmatically, in patients (74 stage II and 30 stage III) whose treatment would have been mastectomy, the percentage of them in whom a conservative treatment can be performed if primarily treated with a mitoxantrone/vinorelbine regimen. RESULTS: 67/104 patients (64%; 95% CI: 55-74%) had a conservative treatment (lumpectomy: 54, radiation therapy: 12, radiation therapy then lumpectomy: 1) Neutropenia was the major dose-limiting side effect, with grade 3 or 4 neutropenia registered in 83% of patients and 53.3% of the 442 cycles. Overall, a grade 3 or 4 non hematologic side effect occurred in 19.8% of patients and in 9.1% of cycles. One toxic death was observed after 2 cycles in a patient with aplasia who developped septicemia. Seventy one per cent of the patients experienced nausea and vomiting but grade 3 were observed in only 12% of the patients. Other side effects, including stomatitis, asthenia, alopecia, and constipation, were generally mild and uncommon. CONCLUSIONS: This mitoxantrone/vinorelbine regimen is an efficient induction treatment with only neutropenia as a noticeable side effect. It allows 64% of conservative treatment in patients whose treatment would have been mastectomy.

Prognostic significance of circulating P53 antibodies in patients undergoing surgery for locoregional breast cancer.

P53 mutations can lead to the production of P53 antibodies in serum of cancer patients. Here we studied the prognostic value of P53 antibodies in 353 primary breast cancer patients. P53 antibodies were detected in 42 cases (12%) and were negatively related to oestradiol and progesterone receptors. The median duration of follow-up for live patients was 5.3 years. In actuarial analyses, overall survival was worse in patients with P53 antibody (p < 0.0005); in Cox's multivariate analysis, P53 antibody was an independent prognostic variable. Thus plasma assay of P53 antibody would be useful to select rapidly and easily a population of patients with poor prognosis.

Randomized trial comparing conventional intravenous bolus FEC and FEC with high-dose infusional 5-fluorouracil as first-line treatment of advanced breast cancer.

FEC (5-FU 500 mg/m2, epirubicin 50 mg/m2, and cyclophosphamide 500 mg/m2) administered as a conventional bolus schedule is widely used in treatment of advanced breast cancer. 5-FU is thought to be more efficient when administered at high doses as a continuous infusion. The aim of this study was to compare the response rate, time to treatment failure, and overall survival obtained with standard FEC regimen (group A) and FEC with high-dose infusional 5-FU (750 mg/m2 per day/days 1 to 5) (group B). One hundred and seventy-eight patients entered this study, 89 in each arm; 10 were noneligible. Both groups were comparable for age, performance status, menopausal status, hormonal receptor status and prior treatment of the initial tumor, duration of relapse free interval, and type and number of disease sites. One hundred and forth patients were evaluable for efficacy. The response rate was 33.3% in group A (1.4% complete response-CR), and 39.4% in group B (9.8% CR) (ns). In an intent to treat basis (n = 168) the response rates were 26.8% and 34.1%, respectively, in groups A and B (ns). The response rate in liver metastasis was significantly higher in group B (57.1%) than in group A (20.0%) (P = 0.03). The time to treatment failure and overall survival were not different between the two groups. One hundred and fifty-three patients were evaluable for toxicity. 10.7% of the patients in group A and 16.0% in group B stopped treatment due to toxicity. Stomatitis was more frequently observed in group B than in group A (46.7% versus 2.6%, respectively, p < 10(-9)). The rates of other side effects were similar in the two groups. In conclusion, the two regimens gave similar overall response rates, time to treatment failure and survival, but infusional 5-FU yielded a better response rate in the liver metastasis.