Effects of Surgical Excision on Survival of Patients with Stage IV Breast Cancer

Transcriptomic characterization of the histopathological growth patterns in breast cancer liver metastases

Metastatic breast cancer (mBC) remains incurable and liver metastases (LM) are observed in approximately 50% of all patients with mBC. In some cases, surgical resection of breast cancer liver metastases (BCLM) is associated with prolonged survival. However, there are currently no validated marker to identify these patients. The interactions between the metastatic cancer cells and the liver microenvironment result in two main histopathological growth patterns (HGP): replacement (r-HGP), characterized by a direct contact between the cancer cells and the hepatocytes, and desmoplastic (d-HGP), in which a fibrous rim surrounds the tumor cells. In patients who underwent resection of BCLM, the r-HGP is associated with a worse postoperative prognosis than the d-HGP. Here, we aim at unraveling the biological differences between these HGP within ten patients presenting both HGP within the same metastasis. The transcriptomic analyses reveal overexpression of genes involved in cell cycle, DNA repair, vessel co-option and cell motility in r-HGP while angiogenesis, wound healing, and several immune processes were found overexpressed in d-HGP LM. Understanding the biology of the LM could open avenues to refine treatment of BC patients with LM.

How mitochondrial dynamics imbalance affects the progression of breast cancer:a mini review

Despite the high incidence of breast cancer in women worldwide, there are still great challenges in the treatment process. Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles, and their dynamics involve cellular energy conversion, signal conduction and other processes. In recent years, an increasing number of studies have affirmed the dynamics of mitochondria as the basis for cancer progression and metastasis; that is, an imbalance between mitochondrial fission and fusion may lead to the progression and metastasis of breast cancer. Here, we review the latest insights into mitochondrial dynamics in the progression of breast cancer and emphasize the clinical value of mitochondrial dynamics in diagnosis and prognosis, as well as important advances in clinical research.

A visualized model for identifying optimal candidates for aggressive locoregional surgical treatment in patients with bone metastases from breast cancer

Background

The impact of surgical resection of primary (PTR) on the survival of breast cancer (BC) patients with bone metastasis (BM) has been preliminarily investigated, but it remains unclear which patients are suitable for this procedure. Finally, this study aims to develop a predictive model to screen BC patients with BM who would benefit from local surgery.

Methods

BC patients with BM were identified using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database (2010 and 2015), and 39 patients were obtained for external validation from an Asian medical center. According to the status of local surgery, patients were divided into Surgery and Non-surgery groups. Propensity score matching (PSM) analysis was performed to reduce selection bias. Kaplan-Meier (K-M) survival and Cox regression analyses were conducted before and after PSM to study the survival difference between the two groups. The survival outcome and treatment modality were also investigated in patients with different metastatic patterns. The logistic regression analyses were utilized to determine significant surgery-benefit-related predictors, develop a screening nomogram and its online version, and quantify the beneficial probability of local surgery for BC patients with BM. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, the area under the curves (AUC), and calibration curves were plotted to evaluate the predictive performance and calibration of this model, whereas decision curve analysis (DCA) was used to assess its clinical usefulness.

Results

This study included 5,625 eligible patients, of whom 2,133 (37.92%) received surgical resection of primary lesions. K-M survival analysis and Cox regression analysis demonstrated that local surgery was independently associated with better survival. Surgery provided significant survival benefits in most subgroups and metastatic patterns. After PSM, patients who received surgery had a longer survival time (OS: 46 months vs. 32 months, p < 0.001; CSS: 50 months vs. 34 months, p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis determined six significant surgery-benefit-related variables: T stage, radiotherapy, race, liver metastasis, brain metastasis, and breast subtype. These factors were combined to establish the nomogram and a web probability calculator (https://sunshine1.shinyapps.io/DynNomapp/), with an AUC of 0.673 in the training cohort and an AUC of 0.640 in the validation cohort. The calibration curves exhibited excellent agreement. DCA indicated that the nomogram was clinically useful. Based on this model, surgery patients were assigned into two subsets: estimated sur-non-benefit and estimated sur-benefit. Patients in the estimated sur-benefit subset were associated with longer survival (median OS: 64 months vs. 33 months, P < 0.001). Besides, there was no difference in survival between the estimated sur-non-benefit subset and the non-surgery group.

Conclusion

Our study further confirmed the significance of local surgery in BC patients with BM and proposed a novel tool to identify optimal surgical candidates.

Role of Surgery in Metastatic Breast Cancer: Insights from a Narrative Review

Metastatic breast cancer is difficult to cure and has a worse prognosis with higher rates of mortality. Recently, breast surgery is believed to improve the survival rates among these women, but due to limited evidence, definite conclusions cannot be made. Therefore, we undertook this narrative review to synthesize the evidence from existing studies to assess the effectiveness of locoregional surgery and surgery of metastatic sites in improving the outcomes among women diagnosed with metastatic cancer disease along with the summary of current treatment guidelines. We reviewed PubMed and Embase and included both observational studies and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that were published in English between 2000 and 2021. Outcomes were either survival, quality of life, toxicity related to local treatment assessed by mortality at the end of one month, progression-free survival, and breast cancer-specific survival. The main effect size assessed was hazard ratio with their 95% CIs. After literature search, we found 8 observational studies and 3 RCTs. The findings of the observational studies revealed that breast cancer surgery improves survival from 30% to 50% among women. However, findings from RCTs were mixed for local and distant progression survival. Surgery improved the local progression-free survival but worsened the distant progression-free survival. Besides, there was no effect of breast surgery on quality of life. Regarding the surgery of metastatic site, studies are complex with mixed findings and variation in survival depending upon the type of metastatic site and response to initial systematic therapy and other factors. Based on the existing mixed evidence, it is not possible to make firm and definite conclusions about the effectiveness of breast surgery in improving the survival or quality of life among women with metastatic breast cancer. In future, more RCTs are required with a larger sample size to confirm the findings of observational studies.

Ten-Year Probabilities of Death Due to Cancer and Cardiovascular Disease among Breast Cancer Patients Diagnosed in North-Eastern Spain

Mortality from cardiovascular disease (CVD), second tumours, and other causes is of clinical interest in the long-term follow-up of breast cancer (BC) patients. Using a cohort of BC patients (N = 6758) from the cancer registries of Girona and Tarragona (north-eastern Spain), we studied the 10-year probabilities of death due to BC, other cancers, and CVD according to stage at diagnosis and hormone receptor (HR) status. Among the non-BC causes of death (N = 720), CVD (N = 218) surpassed other cancers (N = 196). The BC cohort presented a significantly higher risk of death due to endometrial and ovarian cancers than the general population. In Stage I, HR- patients showed a 1.72-fold higher probability of all-cause death and a 6.11-fold higher probability of breast cancer death than HR+ patients. In Stages II-III, the probability of CVD death (range 3.11% to 3.86%) surpassed that of other cancers (range 0.54% to 3.11%). In Stage IV patients, the probability of death from any cancer drove the mortality risk. Promoting screening and preventive measures in BC patients are warranted, since long-term control should encompass early detection of second neoplasms, ruling out the possibility of late recurrence. In patients diagnosed in Stages II-III at an older age, surveillance for preventing late cardiotoxicity is crucial.

The FUS/circEZH2/KLF5/ feedback loop contributes to CXCR4-induced liver metastasis of breast cancer by enhancing epithelial-mesenchymal transition

Background

Metastasis of breast cancer have caused the majority of cancer-related death worldwide. The circRNAs are associated with tumorigenesis and metastasis in breast cancer according to recent research. However, the biological mechanism of circRNAs in liver metastatic breast cancer remains ambiguous yet.

Methods

Microarray analysis of three pairs of primary BC tissues and matched hepatic metastatic specimens identified circEZH2. We used RT-qPCR and FISH assays to confirm circEZH2 existence, characteristics, and expression. Both in vivo and in vitro, circEZH2 played an oncogenic role which promoted metastasis as well. A range of bioinformatic analysis, Western blot, RNA pull-down, RIP, ChIP, and animal experiments were used to define the feedback loop involving FUS, circEZH2, miR-217-5p, KLF5, FUS, CXCR4 as well as epithelial and mesenchymal transition.

Results

In our research, circEZH2 was proved to be upregulated in liver metastases in BC and predicted the worse prognosis in breast cancer patients. Overexpression of circEZH2 notably accentuated the vitality and invasion of BC cells, whereas knockdown of circEZH2 elicited the literally opposite effects. Besides, overexpressed circEZH2 promoted tumorigenesis and liver metastasis in vivo. Moreover, circEZH2 could adsorb miR-217-5p to upregulate KLF5 thus leading to activate FUS transcription which would facilitate the back-splicing program of circEZH2. Meanwhile, KLF5 could upregulated CXCR4 transcriptionally to accelerate epithelial and mesenchymal transition of breast cancer.

Conclusions

Consequently, a novel feedback loop FUS/circEZH2/KLF5/CXCR4 was established while circEZH2 could be novel biomarker and potential target for BC patients’ therapy.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12943-022-01653-2.

Nomogram Predicts the Role of Primary Tumor Surgery on De Novo Stage-IV Breast Cancer Patients: A SEER-Based Competing Risk Analysis Model

Objective

The efficacy of primary tumor surgery on survival in female patients with de novo stage IV breast cancer (BC) remains unclear. Our study endeavored to develop comprehensive competing risk nomograms to predict clinical outcomes and guide precision treatment in these patients.

Participants and Methods

A total of 12281 patients who had distant metastasis at initial BC diagnosis between 2010 and 2017 in the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database, were enrolled in this study. First, we assessed the impacts of primary tumor surgery on overall survival (OS) and breast cancer-specific survival (BCSS) using the Kaplan-Meier curves. Then subgroup analyses stratified by different metastatic patterns were performed using Cox and competing risk models (CRM). Based on the filtered independent prognostic parameters by CRM, we established two nomograms to predict the probability of breast cancer-specific death (BCSD) at 1-,2- and 3-year intervals. Furthermore, calibration curves and area under the curves (AUC) were conducted for validation.

Results

Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that surgery was associated with better OS and BCSS (P<0.001). Subgroup analyses demonstrated that in bone-only metastases pattern, relative to breast-conserving surgery (BCS), patients receiving mastectomy had worse prognosis and the poorest survival belonged to non-surgery individuals (BCSS: mastectomy: HR=1.35; 95%CI=1.15-1.60; non-surgery: 2.42; 2.08-2.82; OS: mastectomy: 1.44; 1.23-1.68; non-surgery: 2.40; 2.08-2.78). Additionally, no survival difference was observed between BCS and reconstruction recipients (BCSS: HR=1.10; 95%CI=0.85-1.43; OS: 1.11; 0.86-1.44). Furthermore, patients undergoing BCS possessed similar BCSS with mastectomy recipients as well as reconstruction recipients in viscera metastases pattern, whereas non-surgery individuals had a worse survival (mastectomy: HR=1.04; 95%CI=0.92-1.18; reconstruction: 0.86; 0.69-1.06; non-surgery: 1.83; 1.63-2.05). Two competing risk nomograms of distinct metastatic patterns were established to comprehensively predict the survival of patients. Calibration curves indicated the terrific consistency of the models. Moreover, the AUC values in the training and validation sets were in the range of 0.70–0.80, exhibiting good specificity and sensitivity.

Conclusion

The surgery implementation was associated with a lower probability of BCSD in de novo stage-IV BC patients. Our nomograms could offer a relatively accurate and individualized prediction of the cumulative incidence rate of BCSD after primary tumor resection.

The circROBO1/KLF5/FUS feedback loop regulates the liver metastasis of breast cancer by inhibiting the selective autophagy of afadin

BACKGROUND

Metastasis causes the majority of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Increasing studies have revealed that circRNAs are associated with the carcinogenesis and metastasis of many cancers. Nevertheless, the biological mechanisms of circRNAs in breast cancer (BC) liver metastasis remain extremely ambiguous.

METHODS

In this study, we identified circROBO1 from three pairs of primary BC and metastatic liver sites by RNA sequencing. FISH assays and RT-qPCR were conducted to validate the existence and expression of circROBO1. The oncogenic role of circROBO1 was demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo. Western blot, ChIP, RIP, RNA pull-down, and dual-luciferase reporter assays were used to confirm the interaction of the feedback loop among circROBO1, miR-217-5p, KLF5, and FUS. Meanwhile, the regulation of selective autophagy was investigated by immunofluorescence, CoIP, and western blot.

RESULTS

In this study, upregulated expression of circROBO1 was found in BC-derived liver metastases and was correlated with poor prognosis. Knockdown of circROBO1 strikingly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of BC cells, whereas overexpression of circROBO1 showed the opposite effects. Moreover, overexpression of circROBO1 promoted tumor growth and liver metastasis in vivo. Further research revealed that circROBO1 could upregulate KLF5 by sponging miR-217-5p, allowing KLF5 to activate the transcription of FUS, which would promote the back splicing of circROBO1. Therefore, a positive feedback loop comprising circROBO1/KLF5/FUS was formed. More importantly, we found that circROBO1 inhibited selective autophagy of afadin by upregulating KLF5.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results demonstrated that circROBO1 facilitates the carcinogenesis and liver metastasis of BC through the circROBO1/KLF5/FUS feedback loop, which inhibits the selective autophagy of afadin by suppressing the transcription of BECN1. Therefore, circROBO1 could be used not only as a potential prognostic marker but also as a therapeutic target in BC.

Study of Selected Flavonoid Structures and Their Potential Activity as Breast Anticancer Agents

Flavonoids contain pharmacological effects that help to protect cells from damage. However, the anticancer activity of flavonoids is related to their modulation of signal transduction pathways within cancer cells. Natural substances such as flavonoids have immune-stimulating anti-tumor effect that could lower breast cancer risk. However, various diseases included Alzheimer’s and cancer disease are associated with flavonoids intake due to their ability as antioxidant agent to alter essential cellular enzyme’s function. Therefore, through interaction between flavonoids and Cytochrome P450 (CYP) family enzymes led to make them chemopreventive agents for breast cancer. In this analysis, the chemo-informatics properties of 5 selective flavonoid derivatives and their efficiency as anti-breast cancer drugs were evaluated. Flavonoid ligands were docked with the predicted protein, which is human placental aromatase complexes with exemestane, a breast cancer drug (3S7S). Based on various docking energies, the molecular characteristics and bioactivity score of the following components, C₁₅H₁₂O₆ 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-5,7-dihydroxy-2,3-dihydro-4H-chromen-4-one and C₁₅H₁₂O₅ 5,8-dihydroxy-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-2,3-dihydro-4H-chromen-4-one showed greatest molecular properties and bioactivity docking scores of −8.633117 and −8.633117 kcal/mol respectively. Therefore, both compounds could be considered antitumor agent.

Hepatic Artery Infusion Pump Combined With Systemic Chemotherapy for Patients With Liver Metastases From Breast Carcinoma

Background: When liver metastasis in patients with breast cancer is diagnosed, treatment is generally palliative and usually consists of systemic therapies only. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of hepatic arterial infusion (HAI) combined with systemic chemotherapy in patients with breast carcinoma liver metastases (BCLM). Methods: From January 2012 to December 2019, HAI catheter systems were implanted under the guide of digital subtract angiography (DSA) in 19 patients with BCLM. All patients received systemic chemotherapy and HAI gemcitabine plus floxuridine (FUDR). Methods: The overall response rate (ORR) of intrahepatic lesions was 73.7%, including 2 patients (10.5%) with complete remission (CR) and 12 patients (63.2%) with partial remission (PR). Additionally, we found that young patients (age < 55 years) had a higher ORR than the older (100% vs 44.4%, P = .011). The median overall survival (mOS) was 13.1 months. Kaplan-Meier survival curves demonstrated that the mOS was not significantly different between patients with < 9 intrahepatic lesions and those with ≥ 9 lesions (13.7 months vs 10.9 months, P = .225). The mOS was 14.3 and 10.6 months for patients without extrahepatic metastases and with extrahepatic metastases, respectively (P = .016). None of the patients had grade 4 toxicity. The grade 3 toxicities included leucopenia, neutropenia and diarrhea. Conclusions: HAI gemcitabine plus FUDR combined with systemic chemotherapy is effective in achieving a high local response and prolonging mOS for patients with BCLM and is associated with a relatively low rate of toxicity.

De novo Stage IV Luminal Breast Cancer: Yes or No for Local Treatment? Serial Cases and Review

BACKGROUND: Primary stage IV breast cancer accounts about of 3–5% of newly diagnosed breast cancer cases. The management of this patient subset mostly comprises systemic therapy, with additional surgery or radiotherapy to control locoregional symptoms. Some of the retrospective studies showed the benefit of locoregional treatment as the first treatment of choice for overall survival (OS), but the efficacy of primary site surgery remains controversial for OS in prospective, controlled trials. AIM: We aimed to presents series of cases with primary metastatic breast cancer with diffuse bone metastasis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was serial of cases with primary metastatic breast cancer with diffuse bone metastasis and a review of the literature. All of the cases were treated with upfront surgical resection of the primary in the breast. RESULTS: During the follow-up period of 36 months, all of our patients were still alive. CONCLUSION: Retrospective studies about resection of primary tumor as the first treatment of choice are with conflicting results, which may be related to randomization bias, including different biological types of breast cancer, different metastatic sites, and patients with different menopausal status. On the other hand, prospective studies did not show any powerful results that would lead the treatment in de novo stage IV breast cancer because of few limitations such a short follow-up period (between 23 and 40 months), younger patients, ER-positive/HER2 negative tumors, and type of chemotherapy given or not upfront. The effect of upfront surgery in newly metastatic breast cancer patients is still challenging, so there is a need to identify the exact cohort of patients who could benefit from surgery.

Large Breast Tumor Ulceration and Quality of Life in an 80-Year-Old Woman

Advanced breast cancer with skin ulceration, bleeding, and odor is associated with impaired quality of life (QoL). In patients with metastatic breast cancer, treatment aims to relieve symptoms, improve QoL, and slow the progression of cancer. Occasionally, it is extremely difficult to alleviate symptoms and improve QoL in patients with breast cancer and skin ulceration, especially elderly patients. Since patient age, patient preferences, and the expected survival benefit from treatment are factors that influence the selection of therapy, physicians should provide an optimal treatment for patients with metastatic disease depending on the situation. In this study, we report the case of an elderly patient with metastatic breast cancer who had substantial skin ulceration. In this patient, multidisciplinary treatment including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery resulted in significantly improved QoL.

The Effect of Primary Surgery in Patients with De Novo Stage IV Breast Cancer with Bone Metastasis Only (Protocol BOMET MF 14-01): A Multi-Center, Prospective Registry Study

BACKGROUND

More evidence shows that primary surgery for de novo metastatic breast cancer (BC) prolongs overall survival (OS) in selected cases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of locoregional treatment (LRT) in BC patients with de novo stage IV bone only metastasis (BOM).

METHODS

The prospective, multicenter registry study BOMET MF14-01 was initiated in May 2014. Patients with de novo stage IV BOM BC were divided into two groups: those receiving systemic treatment (ST group) and those receiving LRT (LRT group). Patients who received LRT were further divided into two groups: ST after LRT (LRT + ST group) and ST before LRT (ST + LRT group).

RESULTS

We included 505 patients in this study; 240 (47.5%) patients in the ST group and 265 (52.5%) in the LRT group. One hundred and thirteen patients (26.3%) died in the 34-month median follow-up, 85 (35.4%) in the ST group and 28 (10.5%) in LRT group. Local progression was observed in 39 (16.2%) of the patients in the ST group and 18 (6.7%) in the LRT group (p = 0.001). Hazard of death was 60% lower in the LRT group compared with the ST group (HR 0.40, 95% CI 0.30-0.54, p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSION

In this prospectively maintained registry study, we found that LRT prolonged survival and decreased locoregional recurrence in the median 3-year follow-up. Timing of primary breast surgery either at diagnosis or after ST provided a survival benefit similar to ST alone in de novo stage IV BOM BC patients.

Impact of Primary Site Surgery on Survival of Patients with de novo Stage IV Breast Cancer

Purpose

The efficacy of primary site surgery in patients with de novo stage IV breast cancer remains controversial. However, few real-world studies have evaluated the benefits of local surgery on the primary site of stage IV breast cancer in China. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of local surgery in the de novo stage IV breast cancer.

Materials and Methods

Women with metastatic breast cancer at diagnosis were identified from Guangxi medical university cancer hospital (China) database from 2009 to 2017. The clinical and tumor features, surgical treatment, and survival rates were compared between surgical and non-surgical patients.

Results

Two hundred forty-three patients were included, of whom 125 underwent primary site surgery. Patients who underwent surgery were more often had small primary tumors, fewer lymph node metastases, and had less visceral involvement. Patients in the surgery group had dramatically longer OS (median 35 vs 22 months, log-rank P=0.006). Stratified survival analysis showed that patients with bone metastasis alone or ≤3 metastasis benefit from surgery, while patients with visceral metastasis did not benefit from surgery. In multivariate analysis, surgical treatment, estrogen receptor status, progesterone receptor status and visceral metastases remained independent factors for survival.

Conclusion

Surgical resection of the primary site can improve survival in selected de novo stage IV breast cancer patients.

Is there a role for locoregional treatment of the primary tumor in de novo metastatic breast cancer in the era of tailored therapies?: Evidences, unresolved questions and a practical algorithm

Improvements in systemic therapies have changed the face of de novo metastatic breast cancer (dnMBC), with a 5-year survival rate exceeding 25 %. Increasing evidence suggests that a subset of patients could benefit from a locoregional treatment (LRT) with prolonged survival, although the diversity of publications on the subject make it difficult to draw any conclusions. In this review, we summarize the available data on retrospective, prospective and current ongoing clinical trials. Since factors such as tumor biology, pattern of metastatic dissemination and the timing of the treatment are closely linked to the therapeutic strategy, we focus on papers which include these aspects. We discuss recent studies indicating that exclusive radiotherapy provides results comparable with those obtained by surgery. We will then discuss the biological rationale for LRT. Finally, we propose a decision-tree to select the optimal candidates for LRT in dnMBC patients.

Radiation therapy for primary tumor of de novo stage IV breast cancer

Despite recent advances in multimodality treatments such as endocrine therapy, chemotherapy, molecularly targeted therapy, and radiation therapy, it is still very difficult to cure de novo stage IV breast cancer patients completely. The traditional role of radiation therapy for these patients has been a palliative treatment strategy that aims to control tumor progression and suppress tumor related symptoms. Recently, several non-randomized retrospective studies on de novo stage IV breast cancer have revealed that locoregional radiation therapy (LRRT) might confer a survival benefit. However, there is no high level evidence to support the impact of LRRT on survival among patients with de novo metastatic disease so far. This article aimed to summarize the literature and to discuss whether treating the primary lesion with radiation therapy could improve clinical survival outcomes among de novo stage IV breast cancer patients. The issue of patient selection will be discussed because not all de novo stage IV breast cancer patients could benefit from LRRT. This article also explores the clinical evidence regarding LRRT for de novo metastatic disease across various cancers such as prostate, uterine cervical, non-small-cell lung, and head and neck cancers. Many retrospective trials have shown the impact of locoregional treatment (LRT) on survival in de novo metastatic breast cancer. However, since the backgrounds of patients treated with LRRT are quite different from those of patients who did not receive LRRT and the treatment consists of surgery and/or radiation therapy, the role of radiation therapy alone remains unclear. Several reports investigated prognostic factors to detect the benefits of LRRT, which still remains conflicting and no consensus exists. However, selected patients with de novo metastatic disease with better performance status, low tumor burden, and estrogen receptor positivity should be considered for the addition of radiation therapy delivered to the primary site. To explore proper decision-making regarding LRRT, further prospective randomized trials are eagerly awaited.

Impact of breast surgery on survival of patients with stage IV breast cancer: a SEER population-based propensity score matching analysis

Background

Breast surgery for stage IV breast cancer remains controversial. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of breast surgery on survival of stage IV breast cancer patients based on the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database from 2010 to 2015.

Methods

In total, 13,034 patients were selected and divided into surgery and non-surgery groups. Univariate and multivariable analyses were conducted to determine factors related to survival. Propensity score matching method was utilized to achieve balanced covariates across different groups. One-to-one (1:1) PSM was conducted to construct a matched sample consisting of pairs of surgery and non-surgery subjects. Breast cancer-specific survival (BCSS) and overall survival (OS) of the two groups were assessed by Kaplan-Meier plots and Cox proportional hazard regression models. Stratified analysis according to different variables was also performed.

Results

Patients treated with breast surgery were more likely to be younger, smaller tumor size, more advanced nodal status, higher histology grade and higher proportion of bone-only metastasis. Those who received chemotherapy and radiotherapy also tended to be treated with surgery. After adjustment for potential confounders, breast surgery group exhibited a better survival both in BCSS (HR = 0.557, 95% CI [0.523-0.594], p < 0.001) and OS (HR = 0.571, 95% CI [0.537-0.607], p < 0.001). After propensity score matching, the surgery and non-surgery group consisted of 2,269 patients respectively. The median survival time was 43 months for the surgery group and 27 months for the non-surgery group. Kaplan-Meier curves indicated that breast surgery could clearly improve both the BCSS and OS for patients with stage IV breast cancer. On multivariate analysis, surgery group was associated with a better survival compared with the non-surgery group (BCSS: HR = 0.542, 95% CI [0.499-0.589], p < 0.001; OS: HR = 0.555, 95% CI [0.512-0.601], p < 0.001). Furthermore, this survival advantage persisted in all subgroups irrespective of age, race, tumor size, nodal status, histology grade, molecular subtype, chemotherapy status, radiotherapy status or status of distant metastasis.

Conclusion

Our study provided additional evidence that patients with stage IV breast cancer could benefit from breast surgery and it might play a more important role in multimodality therapy.

Individualized Prediction of Survival Benefit From Locoregional Surgical Treatment for Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer

Objective: Recently, performing locoregional surgical treatment still remains debatable in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Current study aimed to develop prognostic nomograms for predicting the long-term survival in MBC patients with or without surgical intervention, thereby assisting clinicians in making individualized choice.

Methods: The training set included 5173 patients who were diagnosed with MBC in 2010–2013 from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program, while the validation set comprised 2924 patients diagnosed in 2014–2015. Multivariant Cox hazard model was applied to determine the independent risk factors for overall survival (OS) and breast cancer specific survival (BCSS). Then, individualized pre- and postoperative nomograms for predicting 1- or 3-year survival probabilities were constructed accordingly. Internal and external validations were conducted to determine the accuracy of these nomograms by calculating concordance index (C-index) and plotting calibration curves.

Results: The survival analysis indicated that surgical management conferred improved OS and BCSS in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Age, T stage, grade, distant metastatic site, ER, PR and HER2 status, radiation, and chemotherapy were independent risk factors for OS and BCSS both in surgery and non-surgery group. All these factors were subsequently incorporated into the nomogram which showed acceptable predictive capabilities with C-index range of 0.65–0.80 both in training set and external validation set. In addition, a preoperative nomogram incorporating variables capable of being determined before surgery was also built with C-index above 0.70 both in training and validation set.

Conclusion: Surgical management in patients with metastatic breast cancer suggests a potential survival advantage. In addition, these well-validated pre- and postoperative nomograms may provide a useful tool to assist clinicians in treatment decision-making and in evaluating patients' long term prognosis.

Survival impact of primary tumor resection in de novo metastatic breast cancer patients (GEICAM/El Alamo Registry)

The debate about surgical resection of primary tumor (PT) in de novo metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients persists. We explored this approach's outcomes in patients included in a retrospective registry, named El Álamo, of breast cancer patients diagnosed in Spain (1990-2001). In this analysis we only included de novo MBC patients, 1415 of whom met the study's criteria. Descriptive, Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses were carried out. Median age was 63.1 years, 49.2% of patients had single-organ metastasis (skin/soft tissue [16.3%], bone [33.8%], or viscera [48.3%]). PT surgery (S) was performed in 44.5% of the cases. S-group patients were younger, had smaller tumors, higher prevalence of bone and oligometastatic disease, and lower prevalence of visceral involvement. With a median follow-up of 23.3 months, overall survival (OS) was 39.6 versus 22.4 months (HR = 0.59, p < 0.0001) in the S- and non-S groups, respectively. The S-group OS benefit remained statistically and clinically significant regardless of metastatic location, histological type, histological grade, hormone receptor status and tumor size. PT surgery (versus no surgery) was associated with an OS benefit suggesting that loco-regional PT control may be considered in selected MBC patients. Data from randomized controlled trials are of utmost importance to confirm these results.

Local Treatment of Breast Cancer Liver Metastasis

Breast cancer represents a leading cause of death worldwide. Despite the advances in systemic therapies, the prognosis for patients with breast cancer liver metastasis (BCLM) remains poor. Especially in case of failure or cessation of systemic treatments, surgical resection for BCLMs has been considered as the treatment standard despite a lack of robust evidence of benefit. However, due to the extent and location of disease and physical condition, the number of patients with BCLM who are eligible for surgery is limited. Palliative locoregional treatments of liver metastases (LM) include transarterial embolization (TAE), transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), and selective internal radiotherapy (SIRT). Percutaneous thermal ablation methods, such as radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and microwave ablation (MWA), are considered potentially curative local treatment options. They are less invasive, less expensive and have fewer contraindications and complication rates than surgery. Because conventional ultrasound- and computed tomography-guided single-probe thermal ablation is limited by tumor size, multi-probe stereotactic radiofrequency ablation (SRFA) with intraoperative image fusion for immediate, reliable judgment has been developed in order to treat large and multiple tumors within one session. This review focuses on the different minimally invasive local and locoregional treatment options for BCLM and attempts to describe their current and future role in the multidisciplinary treatment setting.

Incidental diagnosis of breast cancer in the pursuit of the treatment of intestinal obstruction

Intestinal lipomatosis is rare and often asymptomatic but can present with intestinal obstruction. Occasionally, metastatic breast cancer is identified in the ovary before a breast primary is discovered. We report the case of a 50-year-old woman diagnosed with synchronous intestinal obstruction due to lipomatosis, and incidental ovarian metastases from breast cancer. The patient presented with a 12-day history of nausea, diffuse abdominal pain, and constipation. An abdominal x-ray showed air-fluid levels, and computed tomography documented small bowel distention. An explorative laparotomy was performed, which revealed small bowel distention, an obstructive lesion of the ileocecal valve, three terminal ileum lesions, ascites, and heterogeneous ovaries. Right ileocolic resection and left oophorectomy were performed. The pathological diagnosis revealed lipomatous submucosal lesion of the ileocecal valve and ileum, and 17 lymph nodes, which were all negative for malignant cells. The oophorectomy revealed ovarian metastasis from breast carcinoma. Ascitic fluid was positive for malignant cells. Mammography and breast/axillary ultrasonography showed a solid nodule of the left breast, ductal carcinoma, and multiple enlarged left axillary lymph nodes, which were positive for neoplastic cells. Immunohistochemical evaluation showed hormonal receptor positivity and C-erb2 negativity. Breast magnetic resonance imaging showed a 14 mm left nodule and a positron emission tomography scan revealed ¹⁸F-FDG uptake in the left breast, left axillary lymph nodes, right ovary, and peritoneum. The tumor was staged as stage IV ductal breast carcinoma, cT1N1M1, Grade 2, Luminal B-like. The multidisciplinary oncological meeting proposed chemotherapy, and a re-staging breast MRI after chemotherapy, which showed a complete response. The patient started treatment with letrozole and remains disease-free 22 months after finishing chemotherapy.

Hepatic Arterial Infusion Chemotherapy Is a Feasible Treatment Option for Breast Cancer with Liver-predominant Metastatic Disease

BACKGROUND

Patients with liver metastasis from breast cancer (LMBC) are usually offered systemic therapy. However, for those with progressive liver disease and limited extra-hepatic conditions, local liver management becomes an option. Herein we present our experience with hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

From 1999 to 2018, 42 patients with LMBC, who had progressive liver metastasis after systemic therapy, were treated with HAIC. A catheter was placed angiographically into the hepatic artery and remained there for 5 consecutive days. One cycle of chemotherapy consisted of mitoxantrone, 5-fluorouracil, folinic acid, and cisplatin. This treatment was repeated at monthly intervals. The medical records were reviewed and analyzed for hepatic tumor response, progression-free survival, overall survival and adverse effects.

RESULTS

Complete response was observed in two patients (5%), partial response in 18 patients (43%) and stable disease in eight patients (19%). Fourteen patients (33%) had progressive disease after HAIC. The median progression-free survival and overall survival were 8.4 and 19.3 months, respectively. There was no death related to HAIC. The patients with response to the treatment had a significant survival benefit (p<0.005).

CONCLUSION

HAIC can be an option for those with progressive liver disease who are heavily pretreated while their extra-hepatic conditions are minimal or stable.

Survival impact of primary site surgery on metastatic breast cancer patients at diagnosis

BACKGROUND

Stage IV breast cancer was considered to be an incurable disease. Primary site surgery used to be reserved to control local complications. In the present study, we compared the survival of women who received therapeutic breast surgery for stage IV breast cancer at initial diagnosis to the survival of those who did not.

METHODS

Two French hospitals databases were retrospectively screened from 2005 to 2012. We identified all women with metastatic breast cancer at diagnosis. Patients' data were obtained by a review of their medical history. Data were analyzed according the four breast cancer subtypes (luminal A, luminal B, her 2 and triple negative).

RESULTS

One hundred thirty nine women were included, of whom 69 had primary site surgery. TNM stage and phenotypes of breast cancer were comparable in the two groups but operated women were younger than women who did not (p<0.0001). Average follow-up was 31±23.3 months [1-97]. Through logistic regression, we observed that tumor resection decreased death hazard ratio vs no surgery: HR 0.33, 95% CI [0.16-0.66] p=0.001. In the surgery group, there was no survival difference if women received chemotherapy (p=0.23). There were more patients with only one metastatic site in the surgery group (p=0.002) and they had been more treated with systemic therapy. When we compared tumor phenotypes individually, surgery increased survival on luminal A breast cancer patients (p<.0001).

CONCLUSION

Women with luminal A breast cancer and synchronous metastasis seemed to benefit from surgery. The development of a national reporting system or registers for outcomes would facilitate the investigation of the disease across a multitude of aspects of stage IV breast cancer.

To resect or not to resect: The hamletic dilemma of primary tumor resection in patients with asymptomatic stage IV colorectal cancer

Primary tumor resection (PTR) in advanced asymptomatic colorectal cancer (CRC) has been a matter of intense debate for long time. With the advances in systemic treatments, this practice has decreased over the years, although it remains still pervasive. Although the removal of primary tumor has been extensively interrogated both in retrospective and prospective studies, it still remains a clinical conundrum. There are many arguments for and against PTR in CRC both from the preclinical and the clinical point of view. Two scoring models have been published aiming at identifying patients who are suitable candidate for PTR, but they deserve further investigations in larger datasets. While awaiting the results of ongoing randomized clinical trials (RCTs) on this controversial topic, both upfront systemic treatment and PTR followed by chemotherapy should be considered valid options in patients with asymptomatic mCRC. Clinical selection and a shared-decision making approach are the keys to success.

Hormone receptor status may impact the survival benefit of surgery in stage iv breast cancer: a population-based study

Introduction

The role of surgery in stage IV breast cancer is controversial. We used the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database to explore the impact of surgery on the survival of patients with stage IV breast cancer.

Methods

In total, 10,441 eligible stage IV breast cancer patients from 2004 to 2008 were included. They were divided into four groups as follows: R0 group (patients who underwent primary site and distant metastatic site resection), primary site resection group, metastases resection group, and no resection group.

Results

The four groups achieved a median survival time (MST) of 51, 43, 31 and 21 months, respectively, P < 0.001. The Cox proportional hazards model showed that the R0 group, primary resection group and metastases resection group had a good survival benefit, with hazard ratios of 0.558 (95% CI, 0.471-0.661), 0.566 (95% CI, 0.557-0.625) and 0.782 (95% CI, 0.693-0.883), respectively. In the hormone receptor (HR)-positive population, the R0 group (MST = 66 m, 5-year OS = 54.1%) gained an additional survival benefit compared with the primary resection group (MST = 52 m; 5-year OS = 44.9%; P < 0.001). The metastases resection group (MST = 38 m; 5-year OS = 31.7%) survived longer than the no resection group (MST = 28 m; 5-year OS = 22.0%; P < 0.001). In the HR-negative population, the R0 group and primary resection group had a similar survival (P = 0.691), and the metastases resection group had a similar outcome to that of the no resection group (P = 0.526).

Conclusion

Patients who underwent surgery for stage IV breast cancer showed better overall survival than the no resection group. Cytoreductive surgery could provide a survival benefit in HR+ stage IV breast cancer; however, in the HR- population, extreme caution should be exercised when considering surgery.

Readdressing the Role of Surgery of the Primary Tumor in de Novo Stage IV Breast Cancer

The impressive advances in breast cancer treatment observed in recent years also apply to the metastatic setting, where a subset of patients with favorable metastatic disease enjoy long-term survival with systemic therapy. In patients with distant disease, the primary tumor in the breast has not classically been though to merit specific locoregional therapy. However, about 6% of Stage IV patients in the USA and up to 20% in limited resource environments present with synchronous distant metastases at the time of initial diagnosis. For this group, who have an intact primary tumor, retrospective studies suggest that local therapy for the primary site may be beneficial. However, these retrospective analyses are biased in that women receiving local therapy to the primary site were younger and had biologically favorable tumors and lower volume metastatic disease. Two completed randomized clinical trials have shown conflicting results, and others are ongoing. In this chapter, we discuss the results of these studies through the present day and summarize their conclusions and their implications for clinical management.

Surgery of the primary tumor improves survival in women with stage IV breast cancer in Southwest China: A retrospective analysis

The International Consensus Guidelines for advanced breast cancer (ABC) considers that the surgery of the primary tumor for stage IV breast cancer patients does not usually improve the survival. However, studies have showed that resection of the primary tumor may benefit these patients. The correlation between surgery and survival remains unclear.The impact of surgery and other clinical factors on overall survival (OS) of stage IV patients is investigated in West China Hospital. Female patients diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer between 1999 and 2014 were included (N = 223). Univariate and multivariate analysis assessed the association between surgery and OS.One hundred seventy-seven (79.4%) underwent surgery for the primary tumor, and 46 (20.6%) had no surgery. No significant differences were observed in age at diagnosis, T-stage, N-stage, histological grade, molecular subtype, hormone receptor (HR), and number of metastatic sites between 2 groups. Patients in the surgery group had dramatically longer OS (45.6 vs 21.3 months, log-rank P < .001). In univariate analysis, survival was associated with surgical treatment, residence, tumor size, lymph node, HR status, hormonal therapy, and radiotherapy. In multivariate analysis, surgery was an independent prognostic factor for OS [hazard ratio (HR), 0.569; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.329-0.984, P = .044]. Additional independent prognostic factors were hormonal therapy (HR, 0.490; 95% CI 0.300-0.800) and radiotherapy (HR, 0.490; 95% CI 0.293-0.819). In addition, a favorable impact of surgery was observed by subgroup analysis.Our study showed that surgery of the primary breast tumor has a positive impact on OS in with stage IV breast cancer patients.

Therapeutic role of axillary lymph node dissection in patients with stage IV breast cancer: a population-based analysis

PURPOSE

To assess the clinical value of axillary lymph node (ALN) dissection in stage IV breast cancer.

METHODS

Patients with a diagnosis of stage IV breast cancer from 1990 to 2010 were identified using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed to analyze the effect of ALN dissection and ALN status on breast cancer-specific survival (BCSS) and overall survival (OS).

RESULTS

A total of 11,645 patients were identified. Of these, 7358 (63.2%) patients underwent ALN dissection, and 6168 (83.8%) patients showed nodal positivity. During this time, the rate of ALN dissection increased. Patients with delayed diagnosis, age <50 years, poorly/undifferentiated disease, larger tumor size (>2 cm), and married women were more likely to undergo ALN dissection. ALN dissection was associated with improved BCSS and OS in multivariate analysis. ALN dissection improved the survival in patients with bone and liver metastasis, and patients with single site of distant metastasis also had survival benefit by ALN dissection. Lymph node staging based on the number of positive lymph nodes was the independent prognostic factor for BCSS and OS in multivariate analysis; patients with advanced lymph node staging had a poor survival.

CONCLUSIONS

ALN dissection may improve survival in patients with stage IV breast cancer who received primary tumor surgery, especially in patients with bone, liver, and single site of distant metastasis. The lymph node staging was also the prognostic factor in patients with stage IV breast cancer.

Impact of Surgery on Survival in Stage IV Breast Cancer

We aimed to assess retrospectively the survival outcome in patients with stage IV breast cancer who underwent surgery. In a retrospective, nonrandomized study of stage IV breast cancer patients diagnosed in a single institution between 2000 and 2012, we assessed patient's survival in the context of baseline characteristics. A total 678 patients with metastatic breast cancer were included; 412 (60.77%) underwent surgery for the primary tumor (Surgery group), and 266 (39%) did not underwent surgery for the primary tumor (Nonsurgery group), with a median follow-up of 41 months. Patients in the Surgery group had longer survival (41 versus 27 months, p < 0.0029). The 5-year survival rate for Surgery group was 34% compared with 14% for the Nonsurgery group. A multivariate analysis revealed surgery (p = 0.0003), large tumor size (p = 0.0195), ER-positive (p < 0.0001), and metastasis at presentation (p = 0.0032) were prognostic variables. Loco-regional surgery does confer a survival advantage in stage IV breast cancer, however, selection bias cannot be excluded, a well-designed and powerful randomized, controlled trial would be valuable to answer whether surgery can improve survival.

The role and indications of aggressive locoregional therapy in metastatic inflammatory breast cancer

We seek to confirm the effect and explore the indications of aggressive locoregional management in patients with metastatic inflammatory breast cancer (IBC). Between 2003 and 2014, we reviewed the records of 156 patients with metastatic IBC from five large centers of Breast Surgery in the region of central south of China. Clinicopathologic data were collected to access overall survival (OS), prognostic factors and the indications for locoregional treatment. 75 (48%) patients underwent aggressive locoregional therapy. Patients in locoregional therapy group had a median OS of 24 months compared with 17 months of those in no locoregional therapy group. 2-year OS rate of these two groups was 52% and 32%, separately. Locoregional therapy (HR = 0.556; 95% CI 0.385–0.803; p = 0.002) was confirmed to be an independent prognostic factor, which could significantly improve OS of patients with metastatic IBC. For locoregional therapy group, statistical differences were observed in all subgroups stratified by the factors that were significant in univariate analysis except in the subgroups of stable disease, Charlson comorbidity index ≥3 and cerebral metastasis. Therefore, systemic therapy efficacy, Charlson comorbidity index and cerebral metastasis status appeared to be important indexes for choice of locoregional therapy in different individuals.

Surgery of primary tumour has survival benefit in metastatic breast cancer with single-organ metastasis, especially bone

BACKGROUND

Surgery for the primary breast tumour is usually not recommended in metastatic breast cancer (MBC); however, some reports have suggested a benefit of locoregional treatment. We designed this study to evaluate the efficacy of locoregional surgery in MBC.

METHODS

Data for patients diagnosed with MBC at Samsung Medical Center between 1995 and 2011 were retrospectively collected. We compared the survival benefit of all treatment modalities using Cox regression analysis. Subgroup analyses based on number of metastases were performed to delineate the indication for each treatment.

RESULTS

Among 262 patients, 40 (15.3%) underwent surgery. Other treatments included chemotherapy (n = 213, 81.3%), radiotherapy (n = 138, 52.7%), hormone therapy (n = 118, 45.0%) and HER2/neu receptor (HER2)-targeted therapy (n = 37, 14.1%). Cox regression analysis showed that surgery (hazard ratios (HR) = 0.51, P < 0.01), hormone therapy (HR = 0.31, P < 0.01) and HER2-targeted therapy (HR = 0.33, P < 0.01) were associated with improved survival, whereas presence of three or more metastatic organs (HR = 1.62, P = 0.03) was associated with poor survival. In patients with metastasis to a single organ, surgery (HR = 0.43, P < 0.01), chemotherapy (HR = 0.62, P = 0.05), hormone therapy (HR = 0.39, P < 0.01) and HER2-targeted therapy (HR = 0.39, P = 0.02) had a survival benefit. Furthermore, for patients with bone-only metastasis, surgery (HR = 0.37, P = 0.02), chemotherapy (HR = 0.42, P < 0.01), hormone therapy (HR = 0.22, P < 0.01) and HER2-targeted therapy (HR = 0.09, P = 0.02) showed a survival benefit. However, only hormone therapy and HER2-targeted therapy had a survival benefit in MBC with metastasis to multiple organs.

CONCLUSION

Surgical control of the primary breast tumour should be considered as a locoregional therapy in combination with systemic therapy in MBC with metastasis to a single organ, especially bone-only metastasis.

Locoregional treatment versus no treatment of the primary tumour in metastatic breast cancer: an open-label randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND

The role of locoregional treatment in women with metastatic breast cancer at first presentation is unclear. Preclinical evidence suggests that such treatment might help the growth of metastatic disease, whereas many retrospective analyses in clinical cohorts have suggested a favourable effect of locoregional treatment in these patients. We aimed to compare the effect of locoregional treatment with no treatment on outcome in women with metastatic breast cancer at initial presentation.

METHODS

In this open-label, randomised controlled trial, we recruited previously untreated patients (≤65 years of age with an estimated remaining life expectancy of at least 1 year) presenting with de-novo metastatic breast cancer from Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai, India. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive locoregional treatment directed at their primary breast tumour and axillary lymph nodes, or no locoregional treatment, by a computer-generated block randomisation sequence (block size of four). Randomisation was stratified by site of distant metastases, number of metastatic lesions, and hormone receptor status. Patients with resectable primary tumour in the breast that could be treated with endocrine therapy were randomly assigned upfront, whereas those with an unresectable primary tumour were planned for chemotherapy before randomisation. Of the patients who had chemotherapy before randomisation, we randomly assigned patients who had an objective tumour response after six to eight cycles of chemotherapy. The primary endpoint was overall survival analysed by intention to treat. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00193778.

FINDINGS

Between Feb 7, 2005, and Jan 18, 2013, of the 716 women presenting with de-novo metastatic breast cancer, we randomly assigned 350 patients: 173 to locoregional treatment and 177 to no locoregional treatment. At data cut-off of Nov 1, 2013, median follow-up was 23 months (IQR 12·2-38·7) with 235 deaths (locoregional treatment n=118, no locoregional treatment n=117). Median overall survival was 19·2 months (95% CI 15·98-22·46) in the locoregional treatment group and 20·5 months (16·96-23·98) in the no-locoregional treatment group (HR 1·04, 95% CI 0·81-1·34; p=0·79), and the corresponding 2-year overall survival was 41·9% (95% CI 33·9-49·7) in the locoregional treatment group and 43·0% (35·2-50·8) in the no locoregional treatment group. The only adverse event noted was wound infection related to surgery in one patient in the locoregional treatment group.

INTERPRETATION

There is no evidence to suggest that locoregional treatment of the primary tumour affects overall survival in patients with metastatic breast cancer at initial presentation who have responded to front-line chemotherapy, and this procedure should not be part of routine practice.

Surgical Management of de novo Stage IV Breast Cancer

The natural history of stage IV breast cancer is changing, with diagnosis when the disease burden is lower and better drugs translating into longer survival. Nevertheless, a small but constant fraction of women present with de novo stage IV disease and an intact primary tumor. The management of the primary site in this setting has classically been determined by the presence of symptoms, but this approach has been questioned based on multiple retrospective reviews reported over the past decade that suggested a survival advantage for women whose intact primary tumor is resected. These reviews are necessarily biased, as younger women with lower disease burden and more favorable biological features were offered surgery, but they led to several randomized trials to test the value of local therapy for the primary tumor in the face of distant disease. Preliminary results from 2 of these do not support a significant survival benefit, although local control benefits may exist. Completion of ongoing trials is needed to reach a definitive conclusion regarding the merit of primary tumor resection for local control and survival. Until unbiased data are available, local therapy for asymptomatic primary tumors cannot be recommended in the expectation of a survival benefit.

Surgery of the primary tumor in de novo metastatic breast cancer: To do or not to do?

Approximately five percent of all breast cancer patients in developed countries present with distant metastases at initial diagnosis. Due to its incurability, metastatic breast cancer is generally treated with systemic therapies to achieve disease control and reduce tumor-related symptoms. Primary treatments for metastatic breast cancer are chemotherapy, endocrine- and biologic therapy, whereas surgery with or without radiotherapy is usually performed to treat impending wound issues. Since 2002, several retrospective non-randomized clinical studies have shown that extirpation of the primary tumor correlates with a significantly improved survival in patients with primary metastatic breast cancer. Others have argued that this survival benefit associated with surgery may be due to selection biases. Therefore, in the absence of published results from randomized controlled trials carried out in India and Turkey and completion of a trial in the United States, there is no clear conclusion on whether surgical excision of the primary breast cancer translates into a survival benefit for patients with de novo metastatic disease. Furthermore, timing and type of surgical procedure, as well as selection of patients who could benefit the most from this approach, represent additional points of uncertainty. Despite the epidemiological burden of this condition, there are no guidelines on how to manage breast cancer patients presenting with de novo metastatic breast cancer; and decisions are often left to provider and patient preferences. Here, we present a critical overview of the literature focusing on the rationale and potential role of primary tumour excision in patients with de novo metastatic breast cancer.

[Locoregional surgery for stage IV breast cancer patients]

Three to 6% of women newly diagnosed with breast cancers have stage IV disease. Overall survival was improved during the last few years (16-45 months). The treatment of stage IV breast cancer has traditionally been palliative with surgical resection reserved for symptomatic wound complications. Since 2000, several retrospective studies have compared surgery versus no local therapy in women presenting with stage IV breast cancer with an intact primary tumor. All showed a survival advantage for the surgical cohort. However, these studies are limited by the fact that it is not possible to control for biases that led to surgical resection of the primary tumor. Several prospective randomized trials have been undertaken. We have partial results for two of them and they show no survival differences between patients who benefit from local surgery and patients who did not have surgery. However, breast surgery is at low risk of complication, if not considering psychological aspect of mastectomy, and can be proposed to patients with no progression after first chemotherapy. Conservative management can be an option, but surgery must be optimal with negative margins. No benefit of axillary surgery has been shown but this treatment can lead to complications and impact quality of life of patients. Therefore, axillary node resection is not recommended for stage IV breast cancer. Finally, radiotherapy can be an alternative option of local therapy associated or no to surgery in stage IV breast cancer.

[Surgical treatment of the primary tumor in stage IV breast cancer]

INTRODUCTION

The aim of the study was to analyze the impact of loco-regional surgery on survival of patients with stage IV breast cancer.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Retrospective study that included patients with breast cancer and synchronous metastases. Patients with ECOG above 2 and high-risk patients were excluded. The following variables were evaluated: age, tumor size, nodal involvement, histological type, histological grade, hormone receptor status, HER2 overexpression, number of affected organs, location of metastases and surgical treatment. The impact of surgery and several clinical and pathologic variables on survival was analyzed by Cox regression model.

RESULTS

A total of 69 patients, of whom 36 (52.2%) underwent surgery (study group) were included. After a mean follow-up of 34 months, the median survival of the series was 55 months and no significant differences between the study group and the group of patients without surgery (P=0.187) were found. Two factors associated with worse survival were identified: the number of organs with metastases (HR=1.69, IC 95%: 1.05-2.71) and triple negative breast cancer (HR=3.49, IC 95%: 1.39-8.74). Loco-regional surgery, however, was not associated with survival.

CONCLUSIONS

Loco-regional surgical treatment was not associated with improved survival inpacientes with stage IV breast cancer. The number of organs with metastases and tumors were triple negative prognostic factors for survival.

De novo Stage IV breast cancer: breast conserving resection of the primary tumor?

Multiple retrospective reviews completed over the past decade suggest a survival advantage with resection of the intact primary tumor in women with metastatic breast cancer. However, these reviews are not without bias, and recently completed randomized trials do not support a significant survival benefit, although local control benefits may exist. Completion of ongoing trials is needed to reach a definitive conclusion regarding the merit of primary tumor resection for local control and survival.

Is there value to primary tumor control in patients with stage IV breast cancer?

SUMMARY In the past decade there has been interest as to whether or not resection of the primary tumor improves survival in metastatic breast cancer. There have been multiple retrospective reviews addressing this question. The retrospective data seem to suggest that there is a survival advantage with resection of the primary tumor. However, these reviews are not without bias. In this review, we will address the biases present in the retrospective data and the potential harm in offering surgery to women with metastatic breast cancer, as well as the ongoing randomized clinical trials to answer this question.

Does removal of the primary tumor in metastatic breast cancer improve survival?

Although relative survival for breast cancer has improved in recent years, patients who present with metastatic disease have a less than 30% 5-year survival. Thus, improvements in treatment for these patients have the potential to have a significant impact on outcomes. Historically, removal of the primary breast tumor has been offered to these patients only for palliation. However, there have been recent reports that removal of the primary tumor may improve survival. Here, we review the theories and data at the center of the debate, the landmark studies that historically guided treatment, the retrospective data that revisited the role of removal of the primary tumor, as well as the latest advances in basic science and the accruing clinical studies to provide for future directions in this field. Although the definitive role of removal of the primary tumor in metastatic breast cancer is not settled, it is critical to understand the complexities of this debate in order to make further gains in breast cancer survivorship.

Resection of the primary tumor improves survival in metastatic breast cancer by reducing overall tumor burden

BACKGROUND

Although many retrospective studies suggest that resection of the primary tumor improves survival in metastatic breast cancer, animal studies suggest that resection induces metastasis. Moreover, there has been no critical evaluation of how well animal studies actually model metastatic breast cancer. We used our newly established orthotopic cancer implantation under direct vision model to evaluate the hypothesis that primary tumor resection improves survival in metastatic breast cancer by reducing overall tumor burden and improving immune responsiveness.

METHODS

Murine mammary adenocarcinoma 4T1-luc2 cells that can be visualized by bioluminescence were implanted orthotopically into BALB/c mice under direct vision. Resection of the primary tumors at days 6, 10, and 28 were compared to sham resection of the contralateral normal mammary gland and observation alone. Tumor burden was quantified by bioluminescence. Tumor-draining lymph nodes were identified by intradermal injection of lymphazurin, and primary tumors, lymph nodes, and lungs were examined pathologically. Kaplan-Meier survival analyses were performed. Splenocyte myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) and CD4 or CD8 single positive T lymphocytes were quantified by flow cytometry.

RESULTS

Tumors invaded locally, metastasized to regional lymph nodes, and then metastasized to distant organs, with subsequent mortality. Surgical stress increased tumor burden only transiently without affecting survival. When primary tumor resection decreased overall tumor burden substantially, further growth of metastatic lesions did not increase the overall tumor burden compared to observation, and survival was improved, which was not the case when resection did not significantly reduce the overall tumor burden. Decreasing overall tumor burden through resection of the primary tumor resulted in decreased splenic MDSC numbers and increased CD4 and CD8 cells, suggesting the potential for an improved immunologic response to cancer.

CONCLUSION

Decreasing overall tumor burden through resection of the primary breast tumor decreased MDSCs, increased CD4 and CD8 cells, and improved survival.

Role of breast surgery in T1-3 breast cancer patients with synchronous bone metastases

The impact of breast surgery on survival of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients is controversial. We addressed the question in a mono-institutional series of MBC patients with synchronous bone metastases. We identified 187 consecutive women diagnosed between 2000 and 2008 with locally operable (T1-T3) MBC, synchronous bone metastases, with no other distant sites being involved. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared between operated and non-operated patients. Median age was 51 years; 92 % of the women had a hormone-positive tumor. At the time of diagnosis, 131 patients out of 187 (70 %) underwent surgery. Operated and non-operated patients differed in terms of number of bone metastatic sites: a single metastasis was detected in 35 (28 %) operated, and 6 (11 %) non-operated cases (P = 0.01). No other significant differences were observed. The multi-adjusted hazard ratio was 0.63 (95 % CI 0.43-0.92) for PFS and 0.64 (95 % CI 0.41-0.99) for OS in favor of surgery. The 5-year cumulative incidence of ipsilateral breast skin progressions among non-operated patients was 18 %. In this large and homogeneous series of MBC patients with synchronous bone metastases, the role of breast surgery had a favorable impact on both disease progression and mortality.

Impact of loco-regional treatment on metastatic breast cancer outcome: a review

Metastatic breast cancer (MBC) at presentation (Stage IV) is a devastating diagnosis with a poor prognosis and a 5-year overall survival rate not exceeding 20%. The treatment is palliative, and its primary aim is to improve the patient's quality of life. In this context, the benefit of local therapy, considered to have no impact on survival, was to control the local evolution of the disease in order to limit the symptoms. Several publications have challenged this paradigm. These studies, either retrospective single-center or based on population cohorts, compared locoregional treatment to exclusive systemic therapy, which is the gold standard in this situation. The outcomes, marked by inherent biases as in all retrospective studies, mainly related to prognostic factors, albeit suggesting a strong and constant association between locoregional therapy and improvement of metastatic progression-free survival and overall survival. Furthermore, the advances made in the metastatic setting using innovative systemic therapies raise more than ever the interest in locoregional treatment. However, currently we have no data to better define subgroups of patients who would benefit from a strategy that include systematic local therapy. Thus, the important ongoing randomized trials may not only answer some of these issues, but will probably change the practice for many patients with MBC at diagnosis. In this review we will focus on the biologic hypotheses that support the importance of local therapy for MBC patients, review data published in this issue and summarize the ingoing trials.

Primary tumor extirpation in breast cancer patients who present with stage IV disease is associated with improved survival

PURPOSE

Previous evaluation of our institutional experience with stage IV breast cancer patients with an intact primary tumor (IPT) did not reveal an overall survival (OS) benefit for surgery at 32.1 months median follow-up. We assessed the impact of surgery after 74.2 months median follow-up, and the effect of systemic therapy and local radiotherapy (RT).

METHODS

We reviewed the records of all patients presenting from 1997 to 2002 with stage IV disease with an IPT. Cox proportional hazards modeling was used to assess differences in survival between treatment groups.

RESULTS

Seventy-four (35.6 %) of 208 patients underwent resection of the IPT. After adjustment for covariates, surgery was associated with improved OS (p = 0.04). Multivariable analysis revealed that estrogen receptor (ER) positivity (p = 0.002) and having only a single focus of metastatic disease (p = 0.05) were also associated with improved OS. Surgery was highly associated with receipt of RT (p = 0.0003). RT was significantly associated with improved survival (p = 0.015) in an exploratory analysis.

CONCLUSIONS

Stage IV breast cancer patients with an IPT treated surgically had significantly improved OS. Radiation to the primary was also associated with improved survival, but this was evident only with adjustment for the effect of surgery. These findings may be limited by selection bias. Completion of ongoing prospective randomized trials is needed to conclusively determine whether stage IV patients with an IPT should be offered aggressive locoregional therapy.