Metronomic Capecitabine Effectively Blocks Leptomeningeal Carcinomatosis From Breast Cancer: A Case Report and Literature Review

Leveraging Molecular and Immune-Based Therapies in Leptomeningeal Metastases

Leptomeningeal metastases represent an aggressive stage of cancer with few durable treatment options. Improved understanding of cancer biology, neoplastic reliance on oncogenic driver mutations, and complex immune system interactions have resulted in an explosion in cancer-directed therapy in the last two decades to include small molecule inhibitors and immune checkpoint inhibitors. Most of these therapeutics are underexplored in patients with leptomeningeal metastases, limiting extrapolation of extracranial and even intracranial efficacy outcomes to the unique leptomeningeal space. Further confounding our interpretation of drug activity in the leptomeninges is an incomplete understanding of drug penetration through the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier of the choroid plexus. Nevertheless, a number of retrospective studies and promising prospective trials provide evidence of leptomeningeal activity of several small molecule and immune checkpoint inhibitors and underscore potential areas of further therapeutic development for patients harboring leptomeningeal disease.

Leptomeningeal Metastases: New Opportunities in the Modern Era

Leptomeningeal metastases arise from cancer cell entry into the subarachnoid space, inflicting significant neurologic morbidity and mortality across a wide range of malignancies. The modern era of cancer therapeutics has seen an explosion of molecular-targeting agents and immune-mediated strategies for patients with breast, lung, and melanoma malignancies, with meaningful extracranial disease control and improvement in patient survival. However, the clinical efficacy of these agents in those with leptomeningeal metastases remains understudied, due to the relative rarity of this patient population, the investigational challenges associated with studying this dynamic disease state, and brisk disease pace. Nevertheless, retrospective studies, post hoc analyses, and small prospective trials in the last two decades provide a glimmer of hope for patients with leptomeningeal metastases, suggesting that several cancer-directed strategies are not only active in the intrathecal space but also improve survival against historical odds. The continued development of clinical trials devoted to patients with leptomeningeal metastases is critical to establish robust efficacy outcomes in this patient population, define drug pharmacokinetics in the intrathecal space, and uncover new avenues for treatment in the face of leptomeningeal therapeutic resistance.

Unusual case of long survival patient with leptomeningeal carcinomatosis from breast cancer

Leptomeningeal carcinomatosis (LC) is defined as infiltration of the leptomeninges by metastatic carcinoma and often represents the end stage of cancer disease. In breast cancer, LC is associated with a median survival of approximately 6-8 weeks without specific treatment. It could increase by only few months with personalized treatment plans. Usually, the median time of onset of leptomeningeal spread is 18 months and it is diagnosed in up to 70% of patients with active and progressive systemic disease. We present an uncommon case of LC in a patient with history of breast cancer with a 10 year-disease-free condition and an overall survival after LC diagnosis of 10 months. Central Nervous System (CNS) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) showed contrast enhancement of medullary cone and cauda. Despite the negativity of cytological analysis of Cerebral-Spinal Fluid (CSF), the patient underwent meningeal and radicular biopsy in November 2019. The neuropathological examination confirmed the diagnosis of LC. The patient was started on the aromatase inhibitor anastrozole. A whole body contrast Computed Tomography (CT) scan at three months follow-up was negative for further disease dissemination. The patient is currently under oncological and radiological follow-up after more than 10 months from diagnosis. Although nowadays diagnosis of LC is prompted by cytological examination of CSF, its negativity should not halt the diagnostic process. In the presence of a high clinical suspicion of LC, we suggest the biopsy of lesion.

ABC5 International Consensus Conference on Advanced Breast Cancer, Lisbon, 16 November 2019: Commentary by the German panel of experts on the ABC5 voting results

The Advanced Breast Cancer Fifth International Consensus Conference (ABC5) which focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of advanced breast cancer was held in Lisbon on November 14 - 16, 2019. The aim of the conference is to standardize the treatment of advanced breast cancer worldwide using evidence-based data and to ensure that patients with advanced breast disease anywhere in the world are treated appropriately and have access to the latest therapies. This year, the emphasis was on new developments and study results from patients with advanced breast cancer as well as precision medicine. The collaboration with patient advocates from all over the globe is also an important goal of the ABC Conference, which is why the international ABC panel also included a number of patient advocates. We present a commentary on the voting results of the ABC5 panelists in Lisbon by a working group of German breast cancer specialists together with the implications for routine clinical care in Germany. The commentary is based on the recommendations of the Breast Commission of the German Gynecological Oncology Working Group (AGO). This commentary is useful, it includes country-specific features for the ABC consensus.

International Consensus Conference for Advanced Breast Cancer, Lisbon 2019: ABC5 Consensus - Assessment by a German Group of Experts

The 5th International Consensus Conference for Advanced Breast Cancer (ABC5) took place on November 14-16, 2019, in Lisbon, Portugal. Its aim is to standardize the treatment of advanced breast cancer based on the available evidence and to ensure that all breast cancer patients worldwide receive adequate treatment and access to new therapies. This year, the conference focused on developments and study results in the treatment of patients with hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer as well as precision medicine. As in previous years, patient advocates from around the world were integrated into the ABC conference and had seats on the ABC consensus panel. In the present paper, a working group of German breast cancer experts comments on the results of the on-site ABC5 consensus votes by ABC panelists regarding their applicability for routine treatment in Germany. These comments take the recommendations of the Breast Committee of the Gynecological Oncology Working Group (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Gynäkologische Onkologie; AGO) into account. The report and assessment presented here pertain to the preliminary results of the ABC5 consensus. The final version of the statements will be published in Annals of Oncology and The Breast.

Leptomeningeal carcinomatosis in patients with breast cancer

Leptomeningeal carcinomatosis (LC) is defined as infiltration of the leptomeninges by metastatic carcinoma, a relatively uncommon but devastating complication of many malignancies. Although only 5% of patients with breast cancer develop leptomeningeal involvement, it remains the most common etiology of LC. It can occur as a late-stage complication of systemic progression or present as the first sign of metastatic disease, with or without parenchymal brain metastases. Lobular carcinomas have a higher propensity to metastasize into the meninges when compared to ductal carcinoma, especially the triple-negative subtype, which usually is associated with a shorter interval between metastatic breast cancer diagnosis and the development of LC. Prognosis remains poor, with median survival of 4 months for patients receiving state-of-the-art treatment. The main factors associated with survival are performance status at diagnosis, CSF protein level and triple-negative subtype. Headache is commonly the first clinical presentation of LC, and the diagnostic workup usually requires CSF-cytological analysis and or/MRI. The current management of LC consists of a combination of intra-CSF chemotherapy, systemic therapy, radiotherapy and/or best-supportive care. The standard intra-CSF chemotherapy regimen is methotrexate. Radiotherapy is used for relieving obstruction points on CSF-outflow channels due to ependymal nodules, tumor deposits or bulky disease. Objective responses have been reported with intrathecal administration of trastuzumab for HER2-positive disease, yet this strategy is still under investigation. Further prospective trials are needed to better address the impact of these treatment modalities on overall survival and quality of life.

Management of leptomeningeal metastasis in breast cancer

Leptomeningeal metastasis (LM), which occurs when malignant cells spread to the central nervous system, is becoming an increasingly common complication in patients with breast cancer. Diagnosis and treatment of LM is challenging. Moreover, prognosis of patients with LM is poor, with a median survival of 6 months after diagnosis. This review highlights the strengths and limitations of currently available diagnostic tools and therapies for LM. The current treatments for LM, including radiotherapy, systemic therapy, and intrathecal treatment, aim to maintain the quality of life of patients by correcting neurological deficits and arresting neurological degeneration. However, there is no standardized therapy for LM because of a lack of randomized trials on this condition.

Relationship Between Histone Deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) and Breast Cancer

BACKGROUND The modification of histone acetylation and deacetylation is the most important mechanism of chromatin remodeling. These modifications are a subset of epigenetic alterations which affect tumorigenesis and progression through changes in gene expression and cell growth. Results of histone modification studies prompted us to explore the therapeutic and prognostic significance of histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) expression in patients with breast cancer. MATERIAL AND METHODS Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining was used to detect HDAC3 expression in a tissue microarray (TMA) that included 145 patients diagnosed with invasive ductal breast carcinoma. IHC scoring was used to evaluate the staining intensity and the proportion of positive cells. RESULTS HDAC3 expression was significantly correlated with estrogen receptor (ER)-negative expression (P=0.036) and progesterone receptor (PR)-negative expression (P=0.024). Additionally, HDAC3 expression was significantly positively correlated with human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2) overexpression (P=0.037). Our study also indicated that high expression of HDAC3 was more frequently observed in breast tumors with PT2 classification (74%) versus PT1 (50.0%) and PT3 (71.4%) (P=0.040). Furthermore, HDAC3 was correlated with clinical stage II (P=0.046). Univariate and multivariate survival analyses showed that high expression of HDAC3 was correlated with poor overall survival (OS) (P=0.029 and P=0.033, respectively) in patients without lymph node involvement. CONCLUSIONS High HDAC3 expression is closely correlated with ER-negative expression, PR-negative expression, HER2 overexpression, PT stage, and clinical stage of breast tumors. HDAC3 may be an appropriate prognostic indicator in patients with invasive ductal breast cancer.

Distribution and Determinants of Unmet Need for Supportive Care Among Women with Breast Cancer in China

Background

The aim of this study was to determine the need for supportive care among women suffering from breast cancer in China and to identify its potential determinants to inform the development of effective and efficient healthcare services across different settings.

Material/Methods

In a tertiary-care hospital in Weifang, China, between July 2015 and January 2016, all women attending the Breast Cancer Clinic for regular physical examinations after treatment for breast cancer were consecutively recruited. The 34-item Supportive Care Needs Survey tool (Chinese version) (SCNS-SF34-C) was used to assess the unmet needs among participants.

Results

Among 264 recruited patients, based on at least single-item endorsement, 60.2% had moderate to high level of need for supportive care, while only 13.3% expressed no need. Lack of information regarding health systems was the most common domain with moderate to high unmet needs, more so among rural patients (8 vs. 5 out of 10). In each information-related domain, huge unmet need was observed among all patients irrespective of urban or rural residence. Both overall and individual information-related domain-specific unmet needs were significantly higher among rural patients as opposed to their urban counterparts. Multiple regression analyses revealed a significant rural-urban variation of unmet needs. Moreover, education and post-diagnosis time duration were negatively associated with unmet needs while stage of cancer was positively associated with these unmet needs.

Conclusions

There is a huge burden of unmet needs for information on the healthcare system among breast cancer survivors in China. Rural residence, less education, advanced stage of cancer, and shorter duration since diagnosis were the identified determinants requiring targeted intervention.

Neoplastic meningitis in solid tumors: from diagnosis to personalized treatments

Neoplastic meningitis (NM) is a devastating complication of solid tumors with poor outcome. Some randomized clinical trials have been conducted with heterogeneous inclusion criteria, diagnostic parameters, response evaluation and primary endpoints. Recently, the Leptomeningeal Assessment in Neuro-Oncology (LANO) Group and the European Society for Medical Oncology/European Association for Neuro-Oncology have proposed some recommendations in order to provide diagnostic criteria and response evaluation scores for NM. The aim of these guidelines is to integrate the neurological examination with magnetic resonance imaging and cerebrospinal fluid findings as well as to provide a framework for use in clinical trials. However, this composite assessment needs further validation. Since intrathecal therapy represents a treatment with limited efficacy in NM, many studies have been conducted on systemic therapies, including target therapies, with some encouraging results in terms of disease control. In this review, we have analyzed the clinical aspects and the most recent diagnostic tools and therapeutic options in NM.