Prognosis of local invasive relapses after carcinoma in situ of the breast: a retrospective study from a population-based registry.

PURPOSE: The prognosis of local invasive recurrence (LIR) after prior carcinoma in situ (CIS) of the breast has not been widely studied and existing data are conflicting, especially considering the specific prognosis of this entity, compared to de novo invasive breast cancer (de novo IBC) and with LIR after primary IBC. METHODS: We designed a retrospective study using data from the specialized Côte d'Or Breast and Gynecological cancer registry, between 1998 and 2015, to compare outcomes between 3 matched groups of patients with localized IBC: patients with LIR following CIS (CIS-LIR), patients with de novo IBC (de novo IBC), and patients with LIR following a first IBC (IBC-LIR). Distant relapse-free (D-RFS), overall survival (OS), clinical, and treatment features between the 3 groups were studied. RESULTS: Among 8186 women initially diagnosed with IBC during our study period, we retrieved and matched 49 CIS-LIR to 49 IBC, and 46 IBC-LIR patients. At diagnosis, IBC/LIR in the 3 groups were mainly stage I, grade II, estrogen receptor-positive, and HER2 negative. Metastatic diseases at diagnosis were higher in CIS-LIR group. A majority of patients received adjuvant systemic treatment, with no statistically significant differences between the 3 groups. There was no significant difference between the 3 groups in terms of OS or D-RFS. CONCLUSION: LIR after CIS does not appear to impact per se on survival of IBC.

Adjustment of young women with breast cancer after chemotherapy: A mediation model of emotional competence via emotional distress.

OBJECTIVE: Emotional competence (EC) is considered a substantial resource in the adjustment of cancer patients, especially via its effect on anxiety and depression symptoms. This research aimed at assessing the impact of intrapersonal EC in young women (≤45 years) with breast cancer (YWBC) on their specific quality of life (i.e. subjective experience related to daily difficulties and perceived repercussions of the disease and treatments) related to chemotherapy, via anxiety and depression symptoms. METHODS: Two hundred fifty YWBC from 24 French centers completed a self-reported questionnaire after diagnosis (T1) and after the chemotherapy phase (T2), comprising the Young Women Breast Cancer Inventory, the Profile of EC and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The indirect effect of EC (T1) on subjective experience (T2) via anxiety and depression symptoms (T2) was tested using regressions and the Macro PROCESS. RESULTS: Emotional competence predicted fewer anxiety and depression symptoms at T1 and T2, and a better subjective experience at T2 via fewer anxiety and depression symptoms. Depression symptoms appeared to be a stronger mediator than anxiety symptoms on four dimensions (Support from close relatives, feeling of couple cohesion, body image and sexuality, management of children and everyday life), whereas anxiety symptoms appeared to be a stronger mediator on two dimensions (negative affectivity and apprehension about the future, deterioration of relationships). CONCLUSIONS: These results support the importance of developing psycho-affective interventions to reinforce the EC of YWBC during chemotherapy in order to facilitate the cognitive and emotional processes necessary for a better adjustment and subjective experience.

ER-/PR+ breast cancer: A distinct entity, which is morphologically and molecularly close to triple-negative breast cancer.

Determining the status of steroid hormone receptors [oestrogen (ER) and progesterone receptors (PR)] is a crucial part of the breast cancer workup. Thereby, breast cancers can be classified into four subtypes. However, the existence of ER-/PR+ tumours, often reported to be ill-classified due to technical errors, remains controversial. In order to address this controversy, we reviewed the hormone receptor status of 49 breast tumours previously classified as ER-/PR+ by immunohistochemistry, and compared clinical, pathological and molecular characteristics of confirmed ER-/PR+ tumours with those of ER+ and triple-negative tumours. We unequivocally confirmed the ER-/PR+ status in 27 of 49 tumours (0.3% of all breast cancers diagnosed in our institution between 2000 and 2014). We found that ER-/PR+ were morphologically and histologically similar to triple-negative tumours, but very distinct from ER+ tumours, with more aggressive phenotypes and more frequent basal marker expression than the latter. On the molecular level, RNA sequencing revealed different gene expression profiles between the three groups. Of particular interest, several genes controlled by the suppressor of zest 12 (SUZ12) were upregulated in ER-/PR+ tumours. Overall, our results confirm that ER-/PR+ breast cancers are an extremely rare but 'real' tumour subtype that requires careful diagnosis and has distinct features warranting different responsiveness to therapies and different clinical outcomes. Studies on larger cohorts are needed to further characterise these tumours. The likely involvement of SUZ12 in their biology is an interesting finding which may - in a long run - give rise to the development of new therapeutic alternatives.

Triple-negative breast lobular carcinoma: a luminal androgen receptor carcinoma with specific ESRRA mutations.

Primary triple-negative invasive lobular breast carcinomas (TN-ILCs), which do not express hormone receptors and HER2 at diagnosis, are rare and poorly known. In this study, we analyzed the largest TN-ILC series ever reported in the literature, in comparison to phenotypically similar breast tumor subtypes: triple-negative invasive ductal carcinoma (TN-IDC) and hormone receptor-positive invasive lobular carcinoma (HR + ILC). All primary TN-ILCs registered in our database between 2000 and 2018 (n = 38) were compared to tumors from control groups, matched by stage and Elston/Ellis grade, with regard to clinical, pathologic, and immunohistochemical characteristics. A comparative molecular analysis (whole-exome and RNA sequencing using next-generation technology) was also performed. We found that TN-ILC patients were older than those with HR + ILC (P = 0.002) or TN-IDC (P < 0.001). Morphologically, TN-ILCs had aggressive phenotypes, with more pleomorphism (P = 0.003) and higher nuclear grades than HR + ILCs (P = 0.009). Immunohistochemistry showed that TN-ILCs less frequently expressed basal markers (CK5/6, EGFR and SOX10) than TN-IDCs (P < 0.001), while androgen receptor (AR) positivity was more prevalent (P < 0.001). Survival curves analysis did not show differences between TN-ILC and TN-IDC patients, while overall and distant metastasis-free survival were significantly worse compared to those with HR + ILCs (P = 0.047 and P = 0.039, respectively). At a molecular level, we found that TN-ILCs had particular transcriptomic profiles, characterized by increased AR signaling, and associated with frequent alterations in the PI3K network and ERBB2. Interestingly, whole-exome analysis also identified three specific recurrent ESRRA hotspot mutations in these tumors, which have never been described in breast cancer to date and which were absent in the other two tumor subtypes. Our findings highlight that TN-ILC is a unique aggressive breast cancer associated with elderly age, which belong to the luminal androgen receptor subtype as determined by immunohistochemistry and transcriptomic profiling. Moreover, it harbors specific molecular alterations (PI3K, ERBB2 and ESRRA) which may pave the way for new targeted therapeutic strategies.

The self-reported perceptions of the repercussions of the disease and its treatments on daily life for young women with breast cancer and their partners.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to compare the self-reported perceptions of the repercussions of the disease and its treatments and emotional distress in young women with breast cancer and their partners. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study using self-reported questionnaires. SAMPLE: 491 couples in which women were aged <45 years when diagnosed with non-metastatic breast cancer in four different groups of treatment: during chemotherapy with or without Trastuzumab; under Trastuzumab with or without hormone therapy; during hormone therapy; and during the follow-up period. METHODS: Patients and partners completed a questionnaire assessing their self-reported perceptions of the disease and treatments (Patient YW-BCI and Partner YW-BCI for the partners) and their emotional distress (CESD; STAI). FINDINGS: Patients reported more difficulties than partners in the management of child(ren) and everyday life, body image and sexuality, negative affectivity about the disease and apprehension about the future, career management, and finances. While the difficulties were generally more marked in the chemotherapy and Trastuzumab groups than in the hormone therapy and follow-up groups, the negative affectivity about the disease and apprehension about the future was high in all four groups, especially in patients. The partners reported more difficulties in sharing with close relatives, and even more in those groups reflecting the latest treatment phases. No difference appeared between patients and partners in couple cohesion and deterioration of relationships with relatives. Partners were less anxious than patients but as depressed as them. CONCLUSIONS: Difficulties of patients and partners seem particularly severe in the early care pathway, maybe reflecting better adjustment in women under surveillance and their partners. A longitudinal study will substantiate this finding and enable a better identification of some explanatory processes of these differences and similarities in the daily self-reported repercussions of the disease throughout the cancer care pathway. Implications for psychosocial oncology: It seems important to support young women with breast cancer and their partners, as our results evidence distress in both and differences according to the type of treatment the woman is currently receiving. Healthcare providers need consistent methods to identify and respond to couples' distress and reduce significant disparities in support.

Emotional distress and subjective impact of the disease in young women with breast cancer and their spouses.

AIM: Evaluate the influence of emotional distress of young women with breast cancer and their spouses on their daily subjective experience of the disease, through application of the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. PATIENTS & METHODS: A total of 112 women under 45 years of age were diagnosed with nonmetastatic breast cancer and their spouses answered self-reported measures of anxiety, depression and subjective experience of the disease and its treatment. RESULTS: The patient's emotional distress influenced more the subjective experience of her spouse than the spouse's emotional distress influenced the patient. The spouse's difficulties depended as much on his own distress level as on the patient's distress level. CONCLUSION: These data confirm the importance of implementing couple-focused interventions.

The exportability of the ACOSOG Z0011 criteria for omitting axillary lymph node dissection after positive sentinel lymph node biopsy findings: a multicenter study.

PURPOSE: To determine the exportability of the criteria defined by the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z0011 trial for selecting patients who are eligible for omitting completion axillary lymph node dissection (cALND) after a positive sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy result and to investigate whether not following the Z0011 criteria might affect patient outcomes. METHODS: From a multicenter database, we selected 188 patients with positive SLNs and then excluded patients with positive SLNs on immunohistochemistry only. We retrospectively applied the Z0011 criteria and grouped the patients as eligible or ineligible for omitting cALND. The eligible group was compared with the cohort included in the Z0011 trial and with the ineligible group. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were calculated for each group, and univariate analyses assessed associations between the groups and clinicopathological variables. RESULTS: The final analysis involved 125 patients with positive SLNs. Eighty-seven patients (69.6 %) were potentially eligible for omitting cALND. The estrogen receptor status, T stage, grade, and number of positive non-SLNs were not statistically different between the eligible group and the Z0011 cohort. The ineligible group had significantly more positive non-SLNs (P = 0.01) and a lower 5-year overall survival rate than the eligible group (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The similarity of clinical characteristics between the Z0011 trial cohort and our eligible group confirms the exportability of these criteria to another population. The worse prognosis of patients who did not meet the Z0011 criteria suggests prudence before disregarding or enlarging broadening the indications for omitting cALND.

Omitting axillary lymph node dissection after positive sentinel lymph node in the post-Z0011 era: Compliance with NCCN and ASCO clinical guidelines and Z0011 criteria in a large prospective cohort.

PURPOSE: In the ACOSOG Z0011 trial, patients with primary breast cancer and 1-2 tumor-involved sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) undergoing breast-conserving surgery had no oncological outcome benefit after axillary lymph node dissection (ALND), despite a relevant rate of non-SLN metastases of 27%. According to the St Gallen expert consensus, and NCCN and ASCO clinical guidelines, ALND may be avoided in patients who meet all ACOSOG Z0011 inclusion criteria. This recommendation can also be extended to patients undergoing mastectomy, with 1 or 2 positive SLNs and an indication for chest wall radiation, in whom axillary radiotherapy can be proposed as an alternative to completion ALND. The aim of this study was to assess non-compliance with the NCCN and ASCO clinical guidelines and Z0011 criteria, namely the rate of performance of completion ALND when it was not recommended, and the rate of failure to perform completion ALND when recommended. METHODS: Data were prospectively analysed from T1-2 N0 breast cancer patients undergoing an SLN procedure and treated at the Georges-François Leclerc Cancer Center between November 2015 and May 2017. Factors associated with non-compliance treatment decisions were identified using logistic regression. RESULTS: Among 563 patients included, 122 (21.7%) had at least one positive SLN. ALND was not recommended for 76 patients (62.3%), and was recommended in 46 patients (37.7%). The rate of non-compliant treatment was 32% (39/122) overall: ALND was performed despite not being recommended in 16/76 patients (21.1%) and was not performed in 50% of patients in whom it was recommended (23/46). By multivariate analyses, lymphovascular invasion ((Odds Ratio (OR)=6.1; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.4-26.7; P=0.02)) and only one SLN removed (OR=9.1; 95%CI: 2.2-33.3; P=0.002) were associated with performance of completion ALND when not recommended. Conversely, >1 SLN removed (OR=5.1; 95%CI: 1.2-22.2; P=0.03) was associated with the failure to perform completion ALND when recommended. CONCLUSION: Almost one third of patients with invasive breast cancer receive treatment that is not in compliance with recommendations regarding completion ALND.

Time to deterioration in quality of life score as a modality of longitudinal analysis in patients with breast cancer.

PURPOSE: This prospective multicenter study explored different definitions of time to deterioration (TTD) in quality of life (QoL) scores, according to different cutoffs of the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) as a modality for longitudinal QoL assessment in breast cancer patients. METHODS: QoL was assessed using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 and BR-23 before surgery, after surgery, and 6 and 12 months later. The global health score, arm symptoms score (BRAS), and breast symptoms score were analyzed. For a given baseline score, QoL was considered to have deteriorated if this score decreased by ≥5 points at any time point after baseline. Analyses were repeated using an MCID of 10 points and taking the score after surgery as the reference score (to explore the occurrence of response shift). TTD was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression was used to identify independent factors associated with TTD. RESULTS: Two hundred thirty-five patients underwent axillary lymph node dissection (ALND), 222 underwent sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB), and 61 underwent SLNB plus ALND. Patients who underwent SLNB had a significantly longer TTD for the BRAS dimension than those who underwent ALND. Cox multivariate analyses showed that treatment using SLNB and age >59 years were independently associated with longer TTD for the BRAS, whereas surgery elsewhere than at the Centre Georges François Leclerc was associated with a shorter TTD. CONCLUSION: Exploration of different definitions of TTD in QoL provides meaningful longitudinal QoL results for clinicians.

Long-term recurrence of secretory breast carcinoma with metastatic sentinel lymph nodes.

PURPOSE: Secretory carcinoma is a rare form of breast cancer most frequently encountered in children or young adults. Several cases have been described in adults with increased aggressiveness and a risk of metastases. CASE REPORT: We report here, in a 30-year-old woman, a case of local relapse and lymph node metastases occurring 16 years after the initial diagnosis of secretory carcinoma. CONCLUSION: We present the clinical, radiological and pathological findings that led to the diagnosis.

Sentinel lymph node biopsy in two Burgundy districts: prospective multicentric study on 528 breast cancers during the year 2005.

OBJECTIVES: Our purpose was to assess development of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in two Burgundy districts during the year 2005. METHODS: All women undergoing breast surgery as primary care between 1 January 2005 and 1 January 2006 were eligible for inclusion. Eleven surgeons from five different breast-treatment centres took part in this prospective multicentric study. As our objective was to evaluate practices, patients were not randomized and surgeons were free to choose treatment patterns. RESULTS: The 528 enrolled cases account for 90% of all new breast cancers in 2005 in Cote d'Or and Saône et Loire. Half of these patients (286) fulfilled requirements for SLNB. The others (242) had primary full axillary clearance (AC). Four of our five centres offer double-detection of sentinel lymph nodes as well as intraoperative pathology examination. Most tumours were invasive ductal carcinomas, with an average size of 12 mm in the SLNB group (T1C) and 22 mm in the AC group (T2). Two or three lymph nodes were removed during each SLNB procedure. Whereas most SLNB studies report around 25% positive nodes, we barely recorded 18.5% (53 of our 256 patients). Moreover, 2/3 of these node-positive patients had optimal care since additional axillary clearance was done right away. CONCLUSION: Sentinel lymph node biopsy has become routine practice in our Burgundy area. It is mainly dedicated to early stage breast cancer with limited metastatic risk. Our surgeons follow the most recent guidelines and indications are the same regardless of treatment centre.

Evaluation of pelvic posterior exenteration in the management of advanced-stage ovarian cancer.

PURPOSE: The main aim of this study was to show the interest of pelvic posterior exenteration to obtain complete resection of the tumor in case of invasion of the rectum by contiguity in advanced-stage ovarian cancer. The secondary aim was to determine the morbidity of this surgery. METHODS: It is a multicentric, retrospective study of a series of 41 patients, who underwent posterior pelvectomy for advanced-stage ovarian cancer, over a period of 18 years, from July 1989 to July 2007. RESULTS: The surgery resulted in macroscopically complete resection in 19 patients (46.34%), a residual tumor <2 cm in 19 patients (46.34%) and >2 cm in 3 patients (7.32%). In 34 patients (34/41), digestive continuity with satisfactory anal sphincter function was restored immediately or in the short term. The mean delay to the start of complementary treatment was 36 days. Median overall survival was 33 months. CONCLUSION: The main aim of surgery for ovarian peritoneal carcinomatosis is to obtain a complete resection. In the case of direct invasion of the rectum by contiguity, when there is no cleavage plane between the uterus and the rectum, pelvic posterior exenteration is an effective method to achieve this objective. Morbidity is relatively high, but acceptable given the poor prognosis of this disease, the improved survival after surgery, and improvements in post-operative quality of life and functions.

Pathologic complete response to trastuzumab-based neoadjuvant therapy is related to the level of HER-2 amplification.

PURPOSE: Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) are used to determine human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) status and patient eligibility for trastuzumab therapy. Using FISH and IHC, we analyzed the relationship between pathologic complete response to trastuzumab-based neoadjuvant therapy and level of HER-2 amplification in locally advanced breast cancer. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Breast biopsies from 93 HER-2-positive patients treated with trastuzumab-based neoadjuvant therapy were centrally collected and analyzed retrospectively for HER-2 amplification using FISH and HER-2 overexpression using IHC. Tumors were classified by FISH as no, low, or high amplification. Biopsies were reassessed centrally by IHC and graded 0, 1+, 2+, or 3+. RESULTS: HER-2 status of tumor samples as assessed by FISH and IHC correlated: 16 no amplification (11 IHC 1+ and 5 IHC 2+), 27 low amplification (26 IHC 3+ and 1 IHC 2+), and 50 high amplification (all IHC 3+). Trastuzumab-based neoadjuvant therapy achieved pathologic complete response in 35 of 93 (37.6%) tumors. Pathologic complete response rate in low- and high-amplification tumors was significantly higher than in no-amplification tumors (44% versus 6%; P < 0.004). Pathologic complete response rate in high-amplification tumors was significantly higher compared with low-amplification tumors (56% versus 22%; P < 0.005). In the subgroup of low- plus high-amplification tumors, no correlation was found between pathologic complete response rate and IHC score, treatment regimen, T or N stage, tumor grade, or hormonal receptors. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to show positive correlation between level of HER-2 amplification assessed by FISH and rate of pathologic complete response to trastuzumab-based neoadjuvant treatment.

Is the beta3-adrenoceptor (ADRB3) a potential target for uterorelaxant drugs?

The management of premature birth still remains unsatisfactory. Since the relative lack of efficiency and/or safety of current tocolytic agents have been highlighted, it is necessary to develop new uterorelaxant drugs deprived of important maternal and foetal side effects. Our work reported in this review focuses on a potential new target for tocolytic drugs, the beta3-adrenoceptor (ADRB3). This third type of ADRB is shown to be present and functional in human myometrium. We demonstrated that ADRB3 agonists are able to inhibit in-vitro spontaneous contractions of myometrial strips, via a cyclic AMP-mediated pathway. Furthermore, we established that ADRB3 is the predominant subtype over the ADRB2 in human myometrium and that its expression is increased in near-term myometrium, compared to non-pregnant myometrium. Finally, we reported that contrary to ADRB2, the human myometrial ADRB3 is resistant to long-term agonist-induced desensitisation. These compelling data confirm the clinical potential interest of ADRB3 agonists in the pharmacological management of preterm labour.

The transfer of multigene panel testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer to healthcare: What are the implications for the management of patients and families?

Until recently, the molecular diagnosis of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) was mostly based on BRCA1/2 testing. Next generation sequencing and the recent discovery of new genes involved in HBOC now permit the transfer of genomic capture targeting multiple candidate genes from research to clinical use. However, the implications for the management of patients and their families have not been extensively studied, in particular since some of these genes are not well-established cancer predisposing genes. We studied 583 consecutive patients from Burgundy (France) fulfilling the criteria for BRCA testing using a next generation sequencing 25-genes panel including 20 well-established high-risk cancer genes as well as more recently identified predisposing HBOC cancer. A pathogenic BRCA1/2 mutation was found in 51 patients (9%). Besides, we found 37 pathogenic or likely pathogenic mutations in 10 different high to low-risk genes in 34 patients (6%). The most frequently mutated genes were CHEK2 (n = 12; 2%), ATM (n = 9; 1.5%), and PALB2 (n = 4; 0.6%). Three patients had a mutation in two different predisposing genes. The analysis of clinical actionability conducted in mutation-positive individuals revealed that additional disease-specific screening and/or prevention measures beyond those based on personal and family history alone had been recommended in 69% of cases. In conclusion, multigene panel testing is a powerful tool to identifying high to low-risk HBOC susceptibility genes. The penetrance and spectrum of cancers with these other genes are sometimes undefined, and further collaborative work is crucial to address this question.

Patient age and breast resection weight affect immediate postmastectomy breast reconstruction in ductal carcinoma in situ.

PURPOSE: Mastectomy is necessary for 40% of the ductal carcinoma in situ. If immediate breast reconstruction (IBR) is systematically proposed, 81% of the patients would choose immediate versus delayed breast reconstruction, but the actual IBR rate is only approximately 50% of them. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify objective characteristics that distinguish the patients who actually underwent IBR from those who did not. METHODS: Several criteria of 248 patients who have undergone mastectomy for ductal carcinoma were analyzed. Factors studied were age, body mass index, diabetes, tobacco use, and weight of the specimen of resection. RESULTS: The rate of IBR was 43%. An increase in age and weight of the resection specimen, irrespective of the body mass index, was associated with a lower rate of IBR. Thus, an increase of 100 g in the weight of the breast induces a significant reduction of the IBR (33%). CONCLUSIONS: In our series, older patients or patients with larger breasts (irrespective of the body mass index) were less likely to undergo IBR. In order to be in line with the patient's desire, the surgeons of our unit should broaden their indications of IBR. The lack of reconstruction of large breasts should certainly be compensated in part with the recent development of free tissue transfers in our unit. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3.

Development of primary early-onset colorectal cancers due to biallelic mutations of the FANCD1/BRCA2 gene.

Fanconi anaemia (FA) is characterized by progressive bone marrow failure, congenital anomalies, and predisposition to malignancy. In a minority of cases, FA results from biallelic FANCD1/BRCA2 mutations that are associated with early-onset leukaemia and solid tumours. Here, we describe the clinical and molecular features of a remarkable family presenting with multiple primary colorectal cancers (CRCs) without detectable mutations in genes involved in the Mendelian predisposition to CRCs. We unexpectedly identified, despite the absence of clinical cardinal features of FA, a biallelic mutation of the FANCD1/BRCA2 corresponding to a frameshift alteration (c.1845_1846delCT, p.Asn615Lysfs*6) and a missense mutation (c.7802A>G, p.Tyr2601Cys). The diagnosis of FA was confirmed by the chromosomal analysis of lymphocytes. Reverse transcriptase (RT)-PCR analysis revealed that the c.7802A>G BRCA2 variation was in fact a splicing mutation that creates an aberrant splicing donor site and results partly into an aberrant transcript encoding a truncated protein (p.Tyr2601Trpfs*46). The atypical FA phenotype observed within this family was probably explained by the residual amount of BRCA2 with the point mutation c.7802A>G in the patients harbouring the biallelic FANCD1/BRCA2 mutations. Although this report is based in a single family, it suggests that CRCs may be part of the tumour spectrum associated with FANCD1/BRCA2 biallelic mutations and that the presence of such mutations should be considered in families with CRCs, even in the absence of cardinal features of FA.