Family history of cancer other than breast or ovarian cancer in first-degree relatives is associated with poor breast cancer prognosis

The Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes Ratio as a Risk Factor of Breast Cancer

The gut microbiome can reflect the health condition of the entire body. Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes, the major phyla of the colon, can influence diseases related to obesity which are also risk factors for breast cancer. Therefore, the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio was analyzed in patients with breast cancer. Bacterial extracellular vesicles were extracted from the serum of patients with breast cancer and healthy controls. Phyla Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were analyzed using microbiome sequencing. Prognostic factors for breast cancer and serological test results were analyzed for correlations with the F/B ratio. The F/B ratio was three times lower in patients with breast cancer than in healthy controls. In addition, the risk factor for breast cancer, such as fasting serum glucose, was found to be related to the F/B ratio. The F/B ratio can be used as a risk factor of breast cancer and as a clue to explain underlying mechanisms affecting the development of breast cancer.

Association of Neo-Family History Score with pathological complete response, safety, and survival outcomes in patients with breast cancer receiving neoadjuvant platinum-based chemotherapy: An exploratory analysis of two prospective trials

BACKGROUND

Homologous recombination deficiency is associated with platinum-based chemosensitivity, whereas few studies reported the predictive value of family history of cancer for breast cancer in the neoadjuvant setting. This study aimed to construct a novel family history scoring system and to explore its association with clinical outcomes for patients with breast cancer receiving neoadjuvant platinum-based chemotherapy.

METHODS

This study included 262 patients with locally advanced breast cancer enrolled in the SHPD001 and SHPD002 trials from October 2013 to June 2018. The Neo-Family History Score (NeoFHS) was calculated according to cancer type, age at diagnosis, kinship, and number of affected relatives.

FINDINGS

Clinical tumor stage (p=0·048), estrogen receptor status (p=0·001), progesterone receptor status (p=0·036), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 status (p=0·013), and molecular subtype (p=0·016) were significantly related to NeoFHS. NeoFHS could serve as an independent predictive factor of pathological complete response (pCR) (OR=2·262, 95% CI 1·159-4·414, p=0·017) and an independent prognostic factor of relapse-free survival (adjusted HR=0·305, 95% CI 0·102-0·910, p=0·033). Alopecia (p=0·001), nausea (p=0·001), peripheral neuropathy (p=0·018), diarrhea (p=0·026), constipation (p=0·037) of any grade and leukopenia of grade 3 or greater (p=0·005) were more common in patients with higher NeoFHS.

INTERPRETATION

NeoFHS is a practical and effective biomarker for predicting not only pCR and survival outcomes but also chemotherapy-induced adverse events for neoadjuvant platinum-based chemotherapy in breast cancer. It may help screen candidate responders and guide safety managements.

FUNDING

Shanghai Natural Science Foundation [grant number 19ZR1431100], Clinical Research Plan of Shanghai Hospital Development Center [grant numbers SHDC2020CR3003A, 16CR3065B, and 12016231], Shanghai "Rising Stars of Medical Talent" Youth Development Program for Youth Medical Talents - Specialist Program [grant number 2018-15], Shanghai "Rising Stars of Medical Talent" Youth Development Program for Outstanding Youth Medical Talents [grant number 2018-16], Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center for Translational Medicine [grant number TM201908], Multidisciplinary Cross Research Foundation of Shanghai Jiao Tong University [grant numbers YG2017QN49, ZH2018QNA42, and YG2019QNA28], Nurturing Fund of Renji Hospital [grant numbers PYMDT-002, PY2018-IIC-01, PY2018-III-15, and PYIII20-09], Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality [grant numbers 20DZ2201600 and 15JC1402700], and Shanghai Municipal Key Clinical Specialty.

Correlation between family history and characteristics of breast cancer

Family history is a major risk factor for breast cancer; approximately 5–10% cases of breast cancer are associated with a family history. Herein, we investigated the link between family history and breast cancer features to elucidate the importance of family history in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. Data from 10,549 patients with breast cancer were collected from 2014 to 2017. Detailed information about the family history of the patients including the degree and number of relatives affected and the types of cancer was recorded. The tumors were pathologically and clinically classified based on the stage, grade, ER, PR, HER2, Ki-67 status, and subtypes, according to standard guidelines. Data were analyzed using χ² test and multiple logistic regression. Patients with a family history of other cancer types were significantly older at diagnosis than patients with a family history of breast/ovarian cancer (p = 0.002) and those without a family history of cancer (p < 0.001). Patients without a family history of cancer were typically diagnosed at a later stage, including high frequency in N2 (p = 0.035) and TNM stage III (p = 0.015). Compared with patients with second-/third-degree relatives, those with first-degree relatives having breast/ovarian cancer had a higher median age (54.1, p < 0.001) at diagnosis and showed more advanced disease. No significant difference was found between ER, PR, and HER2 status in patients with and without a family history of cancer. Family history of breast cancer can influence the cancer characteristics of the patients at diagnosis, especially patient age, tumor stage, and grade.

Evaluating the role of FAMIly history of cancer and diagnosis of multiple neoplasms in cancer patients receiving PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors: the multicenter FAMI-L1 study

Background: We investigate the role of family history of cancer (FHC) and diagnosis of metachronous and/or synchronous multiple neoplasms (MN), during anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy.

Design: This was a multicenter retrospective study of advanced cancer patients treated with anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy. FHC was collected in lineal and collateral lines, and patients were categorized as follows: FHC-high (in case of cancer diagnoses in both the lineal and collateral family lines), FHC-low (in case of cancer diagnoses in only one family line), and FHC-negative. Patients were also categorized according to the diagnosis of MN as follows: MN-high (>2 malignancies), MN-low (two malignancies), and MN-negative. Objective response rate (ORR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and incidence of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) of any grade were evaluated.

Results: 822 consecutive patients were evaluated. 458 patients (55.7%) were FHC-negative, 289 (35.2%) were FHC-low, and 75 (9.1%) FHC-high, respectively. 29 (3.5%) had a diagnosis of synchronous MN and 94 (11.4%) of metachronous MN. 108 (13.2%) and 15 (1.8%) patients were MN-low and MN-high, respectively. The median follow-up was 15.6 months. No significant differences were found regarding ORR among subgroups. FHC-high patients had a significantly longer PFS (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.69 [95% CI: 0.48–0.97], p = .0379) and OS (HR = 0.61 [95% CI: 0.39–0.93], p = .0210), when compared to FHC-negative patients. FHC-high was confirmed as an independent predictor for PFS and OS at multivariate analysis. No significant differences were found according to MN categories. FHC-high patients had a significantly higher incidence of irAEs of any grade, compared to FHC-negative patients (p = .0012).

Conclusions: FHC-high patients seem to benefit more than FHC-negative patients from anti-PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors.

[Genital metastases from breast cancer: study of 3 cases and literature review]

Le cancer du sein est le cancer le plus fréquent chez la femme, et son pronostic dépend en grande partie de l'existence de métastases. Le foie, le squelette et les poumons en sont les sites les plus fréquents, alors que les métastases génitales semblent plus rares et moins connues. La découverte d'une masse ovarienne chez une femme présentant un antécédent de cancer du sein pose le problème de son origine primitive ou secondaire. La fréquence rapportée dans la littérature des métastases ovariennes est d'environ 20 à 30 %. Cependant, lorsque l'on découvre une masse ovarienne chez une femme atteinte de cancer du sein, il s'agit trois fois plus souvent d'une tumeur ovarienne primitive que d'une métastase. La localisation utérine cervicale ou corporéale est encore plus rare. Leur diagnostic est souvent tardif, en raison de leur latence clinique; l'échographie, notamment par voie endovaginale et couplée au Doppler couleur, et le Frottis cervico-utérin doivent être réalisés de première intention sachant que leur rendement pour leur dépistage des masses ovariennes semble très faible. L'augmentation des marqueurs tumoraux CA 15-3 et ACE doit conduire à la recherche de métastases, mais ne fournit pas d'orientation diagnostique vers un site métastatique précis. Enfin, c'est l'examen anatomopathologique qui permettra de poser le diagnostic avec certitude. Les auteurs rapportent 3 observations de métastases génitales de cancer primitif mammaire (deux ovariennes et une cervicale utérine) soulignent l'intérêt de l'examen génital précis et régulier dans la surveillance des cancers du sein et discutent les facteurs prédictifs de leur survenue.