Gauging the efficacy of neoadjuvant endocrine therapy in breast cancer patients with known axillary disease.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Neoadjuvant endocrine therapy (NET) for ER+ breast cancer can downstage primary tumors. We evaluated NET efficacy in node-positive patients. METHODS: Node-positive patients undergoing NET for ER+ breast cancer from 2012 to 2019 were reviewed. Primary endpoints included rates of axillary lymphadenectomy (ALND), pathologic complete response (pCR), and final nodal staging. RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients were included. Before NET, all were clinically node-positive (cN1 = 36, 94%; cN2 = 2, 5%; cN3 = 1, 3%; Stage II = 23, 59%, Stage III = 16, 41%). After NET, nine (23%) had clinically persistent axillary disease necessitating ALND. The remaining 30 (77%) underwent sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). Of these, 25 (83%) were SLNB+ on frozen section, undergoing immediate ALND. Five patients were negative on frozen section: one had a confirmed axillary pCR, and four had residual nodal disease on permanent pathology. One underwent delayed ALND, and for the remaining three patients, decision was made to forgo ALND. Final overall axillary staging was: N0 (pCR) = 1, 3%, pN1mic = 1, 3%, pN1 = 20, 51%, pN2 = 12, 30%, pN3 = 5, 13%; Stage II = 16, 41%, Stage III = 23, 59%. CONCLUSIONS: While NET is reported to downstage primary tumors, downstaging of the axilla was unsuccessful in the majority of patients.

Depomedroxyprogesterone acetate therapy for hot flashes in survivors of breast cancer: no unfavorable impact on recurrence and survival.

PURPOSE: Survivors of estrogen receptor-expressing breast cancer generally do not receive estrogen-based therapy for menopausal symptoms due to concern for provoking recurrence of disease. Single-dose depomedroxyprogesterone acetate has been shown to be among the most effective non-estrogen strategies for treatment of menopausal hot flashes, but long-term evidence for safety in survivors is lacking. METHODS: We conducted an institutional review board approved, retrospective, case-control cohort study at a tertiary, academic referral center. Patients with estrogen receptor-expressing early-stage operable breast cancer who received depomedroxyprogesterone acetate for hot flashes between January 2005 and December 2012 were identified. We confirmed 75 patients who met strict inclusion criteria who were matched 1:1 with controls for age, stage of disease, HER2 status, and year of diagnosis. Overall survival, loco-regional recurrence-free survival, and progression-free survival assessments for cases were compared with controls. RESULTS: Median follow-up duration was 68.4 months in cases and 57.6 months in controls. Estimated local-regional recurrence-free survival at 10 years was 97% (95% CI, 92-100%) in cases and 98% (95% CI, 95-100%) in controls. Estimated progression-free survival at 10 years was 89% (95% CI, 80-100%) in cases and 83% (95% CI, 73-95) in controls. The majority (75%) of case patients experienced satisfactory relief of hot flashes from depomedroxyprogesterone injection. DISCUSSION: In this retrospective case-control study, we were unable to identify a detrimental effect of depomedroxyprogesterone acetate therapy for hot flashes in survivors of estrogen receptor-expressing breast cancer. Depomedroxyprogesterone acetate may be acceptable for management of hot flashes in this population.

Anastrozole dose escalation for optimal estrogen suppression in postmenopausal early-stage breast cancer: A prospective trial.

BACKGROUND: We previously reported that postmenopausal women with ER+ breast cancer (BC) receiving adjuvant anastrozole 1 mg/day (ANA1) with estrone (E1) ≥1.3 pg/mL and estradiol (E2) ≥0.5 (inadequate estrogen suppression [IES]) had a 3.0-fold increased risk of a BC event. The objective of this study was to determine if increasing anastrozole to 10 mg/day (ANA10) could result in adequate estrogen suppression (AES: E1 <1.3 pg/mL and/or E2 <0.5) among those with IES on ANA1. METHODS: Postmenopausal women with ER+ BC planning to receive adjuvant ANA1 were eligible. E1 and E2 were assessed pre- and post-8-10 weeks of ANA1. Those with IES were switched to 8-10 week cycles of ANA10 followed by letrozole 2.5 mg/day. E1 and E2 were assessed after each cycle. Anastrozole concentrations were measured post-ANA1 and post-ANA10. Primary analyses included patients who documented taking at least 80% of planned treatment (adherent cohort). RESULTS: 132 (84.6%) of 156 eligible patients were ANA1-adherent. IES occurred in 40 (30.3%) adherent patients. 25 (78.1%) of 32 patients who began ANA10 were adherent, and AES was achieved in 19 (76.0%; 90%CI: 58.1-89.0%) patients. Anastrozole concentrations post-ANA1 and post-ANA10 did not differ by estrogen suppression status among adherent patients. AES was maintained/attained in 21 (91.3%) of 23 letrozole-adherent patients. CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 30% of ANA1-adherent patients had IES. Among those who switched to ANA10 and were adherent, 76% had AES. Further studies are required to validate emerging data that ANA1 results in IES for some patients and to determine the clinical benefit of switching to ANA10 or an alternative AI.

Comparison of PARPi efficacy according to homologous recombination deficiency biomarkers in patients with ovarian cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Mutations in the BRCA1/2 (BRCA) genes are associated with response to poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors (PARPi). In addition, there are different homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) biomarkers available in clinical practice [e.g., genome-wide loss-of-heterozygosity (gLOH) and myChoice® score] that identify patients who can benefit from PARPi. Inconsistencies in biomarkers used in PARPi clinical trials make it challenging to identify clinically relevant predictive biomarkers. This study aims to compare clinically available HRD biomarkers in terms of benefits from PARPi. METHODS: We performed database search for phase II or III randomized clinical trials comparing PARPi versus chemotherapy, and meta-analysis using generic inverse variance and a Random Effects model. Patients were classified according to their HRD status: (I) BRCAm (patients with BRCA mutation of germline or somatic origin); (II) non-BRCA HRD [patients BRCA wild-type (wt) with another HRD biomarker-gLOH or myChoice®]; and (III) homologous recombination proficiency (HRP) (BRCAwt and without HRD biomarkers). From those that were BRCAwt, we compared myChoice®+ with gLOH-high. RESULTS: Five studies (3,225 patients) analyzing PARPi in first line setting were included. Patients with BRCAmut had progression-free survival (PFS) with hazard ratio (HR) 0.33 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.30-0.43]; patients with non-BRCA HRD had a PFS HR 0.49 (95% CI: 0.37-0.65), and patients with HRP had a PFS HR 0.78 (95% CI: 0.58-1.03). Eight studies (5,529 patients) with PARPi including first line and recurrence settings were included. BRCAmut had PFS HR 0.37 (95% CI: 0.30-0.48), BRCAwt & HRD 0.45 (95% CI: 0.37-0.55) and HRP 0.70 (95% CI: 0.57-0.85). Patients with BRCAwt & myChoice® ≥42 had PFS HR 0.43 (95% CI: 0.34-0.56), similar to patients with BRCAwt & gLOH-high with PFS HR 0.42 (95% CI: 0.28-0.62). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with HRD derived significantly more benefit from PARPi when compared to patients with HRP. The benefit of PARPi in patients with HRP tumors was limited. Careful cost-effectiveness analysis, and alternative therapies or clinical trial enrollment should strongly be considered for patients with HRP tumors. Among patients with BRCAwt, a similar benefit was found in patients with gLOH-high and those myChoice®+. The clinical development of further HRD biomarkers (e.g., Sig3) may help identify more patients who benefit from PARPi.

Characterizing Occult Nodal Disease Within a Clinically Node-Negative, Neoadjuvant Breast Cancer Population.

BACKGROUND: Neoadjuvant therapy aims to preoperatively downstage breast cancer patients. We evaluated nodal upstaging in clinically node-negative (cN0) patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) and neoadjuvant endocrine therapy (NET). METHODS: cN0 patients undergoing neoadjuvant therapy from 2009 to 2018 were reviewed. Univariate and multivariate analyses evaluated rates of nodal upstaging. RESULTS: A total of 228 cN0 patients with a mean age of 55 years underwent neoadjuvant therapy for Stage I-III invasive carcinoma. Subtypes included ER+/HER2- = 93 (40%), HER2+ = 61 (27%), and triple negative (TNBC) = 74 (33%). Among ER+/HER2- patients, 65 (70%) underwent NET. Overall, 49 patients (21%) were upstaged due to occult nodal disease. Factors associated with higher rates of occult nodal disease included advanced stage on initial presentation (P = .008), larger presenting tumor size (P = .009), low/intermediate tumor grade (P = .025), and ER+/HER2- subtype (P < .001); incidence of occult nodal disease by subtype included: ER+/HER2- = 37%, HER2+ = 15%, TNBC = 8%. Patients experiencing a breast pCR had a significantly lower rate of nodal upstaging compared to those with residual tumor (4% vs. 96%, P < .001). On multivariate analysis, ER+/HER- patients exhibited higher risk of occult nodal disease when compared to patients with HER2+ (odds ratio [OR] = 3.4, 95% CI, 1.2-9.8, P = .003) and TNBC (OR = 5.7, 95% CI, 1.7-19.6, P = .003). Comparing NAC vs. NET in ER+/HER2- patients showed no difference in rates of occult nodal disease (39% vs. 35%, P = .13). CONCLUSIONS: ER+/HER2- subtype carries higher risk for occult nodal disease after neoadjuvant therapy; NAC versus NET in these patients does not affect nodal upstaging.