HER2-positive advanced breast cancer treatment in 2020

HER2-positive breast cancer is an aggressive subtype identified in the 1980s. The development of therapies targeting the HER2 has improved outcomes. The current standard of care, established in 2012 is dual blockade with trastuzumab + pertuzumab as first-line followed by TDM-1 as second-line. Several suboptimal choices are available in third-line or more. In 2019 the presentation of several trials evaluating new drugs and regimens in third-line has re-opened questions about sequencing, treatment of triple positive disease and treatment choice after exposure to TDM-1. These include tucatinib, neratinib and trastuzumab-deruxtecan. Other agents – including other antibody drug conjugates and bispecific antibodies as well as combinations - will lead to further changes in coming years. Additionally, should the numerous putative biomarkers thus identified ever come into use at the clinic, choice of treatment and response evaluation may be substantially changed.     

乳腺弥漫大B细胞淋巴瘤临床特点及预后分析

目的:探讨乳腺弥漫大B细胞淋巴瘤（DLBCL）患者的临床特征及预后。方法:回顾性分析2014年5月起至2018年12月我院收治的18例乳腺DLBCL患者的临床特点及预后。结果:在18例患者中，17例为女性，中位年龄为57岁，病变主要累及右侧乳腺（11/18，61.1%）。将其分为原发性乳腺DLBCL（PB-DLBCL）和继发性乳腺DLBCL（SB-DLBCL）两大类。11例（57.6%）PB-DLBCL与7例（42.4%）SB-DLBCL相比，其具有Ann Arbor分期多为Ⅰ-Ⅱ期（P＜0.01）、B症状少（P=0.013）、相对更高的白细胞计数（P=0.041）、骨髓未累及（P=0.043）、完全缓解（CR）率高（P=0.049）等特点。生存分析发现PB-DLBCL患者5年总生存期（OS）显著长于SB-DLBCL患者（P=0.013）。本研究以非生发中心B细胞型（non-GCB）居多，生发中心型（GCB）与non-GCB型之间OS无显著差异（P=0.885）。所有获得CR患者的生存期均显著延长（P=0.008）。结论:乳腺DLBCL多见于中年女性，以右侧乳腺肿块为主要临床表现，分子分型多为non-GCB型。与SB-DLBCL患者相比，PB-DLBCL患者具有Ann Arbor分期早、B症状少、相对更高的白细胞计数、骨髓未累及、CR率高等特点，并且生存期显著延长。无论是PB-DLBCL和SB-DLBCL，还是GCB型和non-GCB型，获得CR提示预后良好。     

Analysis of Heterozygous BRCA1 5382ins Founder Mutation in a Cohort of Egyptian Breast Cancer Female Patients Using Pyrosequencing Technique

Background: Up to half of the heritable mutations in breast cancer (BC) are attributed to BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. The mutation prevalence is variable based on ethnicity and may be influenced by founder mutations. The aim of this pilot study is to determine for the first time, the prevalence of BRCA1 5382insC founder mutation in a cohort of Egyptian familial breast cancer patients (FBC). Methods: Female patients were selected to have familial type of breast cancer. Twenty healthy females were included as a control group. Peripheral blood samples were withdrawn from all studied females and were analyzed for BRCA1 5382insC founder mutation detection using pyrosequencing technique. Results: Eighty Egyptian FBC females were eligible to be enrolled in the study with a mean age of 48.31 ± 10.97years.We found a BRCA1 5382insC mutation carrier frequency of 5% of total studied FBC patients (4 out of 80 patients) with 95% confidence interval (1.61-12.99). There was a high statistical significant difference between carriers and non-carriers concerning the number of affected family members by BC, (p=0.001).  Conclusion: BRCA1 5382insC founder mutation is not uncommon among Egyptian FBC females. The carrier frequency is comparable to that reported worldwide; however it is lower than those from previous Egyptian studies using different molecular techniques. The strong association between the mutation and the number of affected family members suggest wider screening of the mutation among high risk families using the reliable pyrosequencing technique.     

Tumor-to-tumor metastases: Latent renal cell carcinoma discovered after elective surgical resection of a convexity meningioma

BackgroundTumor-to-tumor metastases are extremely rarely reported lesions, which usually involve an indolent lesion hosting a more aggressive neoplasm. We present an unusual initial manifestation of a previously unknown clear cell renal cell carcinoma as a tumor-to-tumor metastasis in a typical meningothelial meningioma.Case reportA 73-year old patient with transient left slight monoparesis was addressed to our Neurosurgical Department after being evaluated by his general practitioner and passing a cerebral MRI which revealed a right frontotemporal mass attached to the meninge. At presentation, no deficits were identified; therefore an elective surgery was proposed. Histological analysis revealed a typical meningothelial meningioma containing a metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma. Additional thoraco-abdominal computer tomography identified a 6 cm diameter lesion within the right kidney with radiological features highly suggestive of a primary clear cell renal cell carcinoma.ConclusionOur case highlights the need for a specialized neuropathological approach to clinical and imagistic indolent meningiomas, as they may require important differential diagnosis that can highly impact the treatment and follow-up of brain tumor patients.     

外泌体在肿瘤转移前微环境形成中的作用

肿瘤的转移前微环境（pre-metastatic niche，PMN）特指原发肿瘤灶为肿瘤细胞远处播散和定植准备的微环境，此微环境的六个特征包括炎症、免疫抑制、血管生成/血管通透性、亲器官性、重编程和淋巴管生成。PMN形成的关键成分包括肿瘤源性分泌因子、细胞外囊泡（含外泌体）、骨髓源性细胞、免疫抑制细胞和宿主基质细胞等，其中，外泌体作为细胞间重要的信使，在肿瘤PMN的形成中具有重要作用。本综述就外泌体在肿瘤PMN形成中的作用进行探讨。     

抗PD-(L)1、抗CTLA-4免疫治疗标志物研究进展

免疫检查点抑制剂已经改变了包括肺癌、黑色素瘤等许多肿瘤的治疗情况，并且在一些难治性肿瘤中表现出持久的应答率，然而在部分接受治疗的患者中表现出无反应及严重免疫相关副作用。为了优化免疫疗法的使用，可能需要多种临床应答的预测性标志物。本研究回顾了几种潜在有效生物标志物的可用数据，通过免疫组化检测肿瘤细胞和免疫细胞中PD-L1的表达，提示其是一种临床疗效的良好预测标志物;且PD-L1表达阴性者经免疫治疗后仍可获益。PD-L1表达在肿瘤内是动态和异质性的:在原发性灶和转移灶之间或在穿刺标本和大体标本之间表达不一致。肿瘤突变负荷与新抗原的高比率可获得持久获益。外周血标志物也可作为潜在标志物，增加的绝对淋巴细胞计数（ALC）与疾病控制和生存显著相关。在这篇综述中，我们旨在讨论抗PD-（L）1与抗CTLA-4 免疫治疗相关标志物研究现状，为临床运用提供指导，以便能够准确筛选出从这些治疗中获益更多的患者。     

Evodiamine-inspired dual inhibitors of histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) and topoisomerase 2 (TOP2) with potent antitumor activity

A great challenge in multi-targeting drug discovery is to identify drug-like lead compounds with therapeutic advantages over single target inhibitors and drug combinations. Inspired by our previous efforts in designing antitumor evodiamine derivatives, herein selective histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) and topoisomerase 2 (TOP2) dual inhibitors were successfully identified, which showed potent in vitro and in vivo antitumor potency. Particularly, compound 30a was orally active and possessed excellent in vivo antitumor activity in the HCT116 xenograft model (TGI = 75.2%, 150 mg/kg, p.o.) without significant toxicity, which was more potent than HDAC inhibitor vorinostat, TOP inhibitor evodiamine and their combination. Taken together, this study highlights the therapeutic advantages of evodiamine-based HDAC1/TOP2 dual inhibitors and provides valuable leads for the development of novel multi-targeting antitumor agents.     

EZH2在乳腺癌中的差异表达及临床意义

目的:利用整合生物信息学手段分析EZH2（enhancer of zeste 2 polycomb repressive complex 2 subunit）基因在乳腺癌中的表达及其临床意义。方法:在肿瘤基因组计划数据库（The Cancer Genome Atlas，TCGA）中下载乳腺癌与正常乳腺组织的基因表达谱数据，进一步利用Ualcan数据库和人类蛋白质图谱（The Human Protein Atlas）数据库数据分析EZH2基因在乳腺癌中的mRNA及蛋白表达水平。利用Ualcan数据库分析EZH2基因的甲基化水平并筛选其共表达基因；对EZH2及其共表达基因进行GO（Gene Ontology）富集分析和KEGG通路分析以明确EZH2的共表达基因参与的生物学过程和相关通路；使用Kaplan-Meier生存分析法分析乳腺癌患者的总生存期、无病生存期、无远处转移生存期及后进展生存期与EZH2基因表达水平的关系并绘制生存曲线。结果:与正常乳腺组织相比，EZH2在乳腺癌组织中的mRNA及蛋白表达量明显升高。而EZH2的甲基化程度在乳腺癌组织与正常乳腺组织中则差异不明显。同时，EZH2的表达水平与年龄、乳腺癌分期及乳腺癌分子分型等因素密切相关。EZH2及其共表达基因主要参与了核碱基的调节、细胞周期调控、染色体分离、DNA复制、DNA修复等生物学过程，并参与了细胞周期、DNA 复制、M/G1期转化、M期、有丝分裂前中期、ATM通路等生物学通路。此外，EZH2基因表达水平高的乳腺癌患者的总生存期、无病生存期、无远处转移生存期及后进展生存期均明显低于EZH2基因低表达的患者。结论:EZH2在乳腺癌组织中高表达并且与患者不良预后密切相关。同时，EZH2的表达水平与乳腺癌的发生、发展密切相关。EZH2在乳腺癌诊断、靶向治疗及预后分析中具有重要的临床意义。     

Hair shaft miRNA‐221 levels as a new tumor marker of malignant melanoma

miRNA‐221 (miR‐221) is known to be abnormally expressed in many human cancers. The serum levels of miR‐221 have been reported as a tumor marker for malignant melanoma (MM). We hypothesized that the hair shaft miR‐221 levels may be increased in patients with MM. We therefore assessed the possibility that hair shaft miR‐221 levels could be a marker for MM. The hair shaft miR‐221 levels were significantly higher in patients with MM than controls. The rates of increased hair shaft miR‐221 levels above the cut‐off value were comparable to those of serum 5‐S‐CD, which is a tumor marker commonly used for MM. Measurements of the hair shaft miR‐221 levels could have potential clinical value in the detection of MM. This is the first report investigating the hair shaft levels of an miRNA in patients with MM. Our investigations offer new insight into the relationship between miR‐221 and MM, and may provide a new, non‐invasive way to screen for melanoma.