Purpose: Many patients with early breast cancer (eBC) undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy do not achieve pathological complete response (pCR), which is a prognostic factor. We examined the role of HER2-low expression in predicting pCR and prognosis in HER2-negative eBC. Methods: We evaluated patients with stage I-III HER2-negative BC, treated between 2013 and 2023 at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London. Tumors were classified based on estrogen receptor (ER) status and into HER2-low and HER2-zero subgroups. We analyzed pCR rates, relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: 754 patients were included in the analysis. pCR rate was 8.9% in the ER+ /HER2-low, 16.5% in the ER+ /HER2-zero, 38.9% in the ER- ER-/HER2-low and 35.9% in the ER-/HER2-zero eBC (p < 0.001). Multivariable analysis showed a significantly lower pCR rate in HER2-low compared to HER2-zero BC in the ER+ subgroup. At a median follow-up of 63.8 months (59.9-67.4), we observed longer OS in HER2-low compared to HER2-zero patients in the overall and in the ER+ population. There was no predictive or prognostic impact of HER2-low status in the ER- population. Conclusion: This study supports the interpretation of HER2 status as a possible prognostic and predictive biomarker for HER2-negative eBC, especially among patients with ER+ disease.
The emerging predictive and prognostic role of HER2 in HER2-negative early breast cancer: a retrospective study / Corianò, M., Tommasi, C., Dinh, A.T.L., Needham, J., Aziz, H., Joharatnam-Hogan, N., Cunningham, N., Waterhouse, J., Sun, M., Turkes, F., Pellegrino, B., Mcgrath, S., Okines, A., Parton, M., Turner, N., Johnston, S., Musolino, A., Ring, A., Battisti, N.M.L.. - In: BREAST CANCER RESEARCH AND TREATMENT. - ISSN 0167-6806. - (2024). [10.1007/s10549-024-07336-4]
The emerging predictive and prognostic role of HER2 in HER2-negative early breast cancer: a retrospective study
Tommasi C.;Pellegrino B.;Musolino A.;
2024-01-01
Abstract
Purpose: Many patients with early breast cancer (eBC) undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy do not achieve pathological complete response (pCR), which is a prognostic factor. We examined the role of HER2-low expression in predicting pCR and prognosis in HER2-negative eBC. Methods: We evaluated patients with stage I-III HER2-negative BC, treated between 2013 and 2023 at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London. Tumors were classified based on estrogen receptor (ER) status and into HER2-low and HER2-zero subgroups. We analyzed pCR rates, relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: 754 patients were included in the analysis. pCR rate was 8.9% in the ER+ /HER2-low, 16.5% in the ER+ /HER2-zero, 38.9% in the ER- ER-/HER2-low and 35.9% in the ER-/HER2-zero eBC (p < 0.001). Multivariable analysis showed a significantly lower pCR rate in HER2-low compared to HER2-zero BC in the ER+ subgroup. At a median follow-up of 63.8 months (59.9-67.4), we observed longer OS in HER2-low compared to HER2-zero patients in the overall and in the ER+ population. There was no predictive or prognostic impact of HER2-low status in the ER- population. Conclusion: This study supports the interpretation of HER2 status as a possible prognostic and predictive biomarker for HER2-negative eBC, especially among patients with ER+ disease.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
