Anthony Skene

Neoadjuvant Treatment of Postmenopausal Breast Cancer With Anastrozole, Tamoxifen, or Both in Combination: The Immediate Preoperative Anastrozole, Tamoxifen, or Combined With Tamoxifen (IMPACT) Multicenter Double-Blind Randomized Trial

PURPOSE The Immediate Preoperative Anastrozole, Tamoxifen, or Combined With Tamoxifen (IMPACT) trial was designed to test the hypothesis that the clinical and/or biologic effects of neoadjuvant tamoxifen compared with anastrozole and with the combination of tamoxifen and anastrozole before surgery in postmenopausal women with estrogen receptor (ER) -positive, invasive, nonmetastatic breast cancer might predict for outcome in the Arimidex, Tamoxifen Alone or in Combination (ATAC) adjuvant therapy trial. PATIENTS AND METHODS Postmenopausal women with ER-positive, invasive, nonmetastatic, and operable or locally advanced potentially operable breast cancer were randomly assigned to neoadjuvant tamoxifen (20 mg daily), anastrozole (1 mg daily), or a combination of tamoxifen and anastrozole for 3 months. The tumor objective response (OR) was assessed by both caliper and ultrasound. Comparisons were also made of clinical response with ultrasound response, actual and feasible surgery with feasible surgery at baseline, OR in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive cancers, and tolerability. RESULTS There were no significant differences in OR in the intent-to-treat population between patients receiving tamoxifen, anastrozole, or the combination. In patients who were assessed as requiring mastectomy at baseline (n = 124), 44% of patients received breast-conserving surgery (BCS) after anastrozole compared with 31% of patients after tamoxifen (P = .23); this difference became significant for patients who were deemed feasible for BCS by their surgeon (46% v 22%, respectively; P = .03). The OR for patients with HER2-positive cancer (n = 34) was 58% for anastrozole compared with 22% for tamoxifen (P = .18). All treatments were well tolerated. CONCLUSION Neoadjuvant anastrozole is as effective and well tolerated as tamoxifen in ER-positive operable breast cancer in postmenopausal women, but the hypothesis that clinical outcome might predict for long-term outcome in adjuvant therapy was not fulfilled.

Biomarker Changes During Neoadjuvant Anastrozole, Tamoxifen, or the Combination: Influence of Hormonal Status and HER-2 in Breast Cancer—A Study from the IMPACT Trialists

PURPOSE To investigate the relationships between biomarker changes in breast cancer during neoadjuvant (preoperative) endocrine therapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS The IMPACT trial compared the preoperative use of tamoxifen with anastrozole alone or in combination in postmenopausal women (n = 330) with primary breast cancer. Biomarkers were measured in tumor biopsy specimens taken at baseline, and after 2 and 12 weeks of treatment. RESULTS 52 (93%) of 56, 46 (85%) of 54, and 37 (84%) of 44 patients in the anastrozole, tamoxifen, and combination groups, respectively. There was a significantly greater suppression of Ki67 in the anastrozole-treated group than in the tamoxifen- or combination-treated groups, which is parallel to the greater efficacy seen for anastrozole over these two treatments in the Arimidex, Tamoxifen, Alone or in Combination adjuvant trial. A positive relationship was noted between estrogen-receptor level and Ki67 suppression in all patients. Ki67 was reduced to a greater extent in progesterone receptor-positive tumors compared with progesterone receptor-negative tumors. HER-2-negative tumors tended to show a greater reduction in Ki67 compared with HER-2-positive tumors, but the difference was only significant in the tamoxifen group after 2 weeks, and in the anastrozole group after 12 weeks. CONCLUSION These results confirm the value of Ki67 as a molecular marker, and provide information regarding the relationships between treatment-induced changes in Ki67 and other important biomarkers. Studies such as this should help integrate agents targeted at growth factor signaling with endocrine agents in breast cancer.

A phase II placebo-controlled trial of neoadjuvant anastrozole alone or with gefitinib in early breast cancer.

PURPOSE Increased epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression may promote breast cancer resistance to endocrine therapy. We have therefore investigated whether neoadjuvant gefitinib, an EGFR inhibitor, might overcome biologic and clinical resistance to neoadjuvant anastrozole in a phase II placebo-controlled trial. PATIENTS AND METHODS Postmenopausal women with stage I to IIIB hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer received anastrozole 1 mg daily for 16 weeks and were randomly assigned at a ratio of 2:5:5 to receive, in addition, gefitinib 250 mg/d orally for 16 weeks: placebo 1 tablet/d orally for 2 weeks and then gefitinib for 14 weeks or placebo for 16 weeks. The primary end point was biologic change in proliferation as measured by Ki67 at 2 and 16 weeks; the main secondary end point was overall objective response (OR). RESULTS Two hundred six women were randomly assigned. Mean changes in Ki67 with anastrozole and gefitinib versus anastrozole alone were -77.4% and -83.6%, respectively, between baseline and 16 weeks (geometric mean ratio = 1.37; 95% CI, 0.79 to 2.39; P = .26), -80.1% and -71.3% between baseline and 2 weeks (geometric mean ratio = 0.70; 95% CI, 0.39 to 1.25; P = .22) and -19.3% and -43% (geometric mean ratio = 1.42; 95% CI, 0.86 to 2.35; P = .16) between 2 and 16 weeks. ORs in the combination and anastrozole alone groups were 48% and 61% (estimated difference = -13.1%; 95% CI, -27.3% to 1.2%), respectively, with a nonsignificant trend against the combination (P = .08) and 48% versus 72% (estimated difference = -24.1%; 95% CI, -45.3% to -2.9%) in the progesterone-receptor-positive subgroup, which was significant (P = .03) and consistent with Ki67 changes. Common treatment-related adverse events included diarrhea, rash, alopecia, dry skin, and nausea. There was no evidence of a pharmacokinetic interaction. CONCLUSION Addition of gefitinib to neoadjuvant anastrozole had no additional clinical or biologic effect, failing to support our original hypothesis.

Prospective comparison of switches in biomarker status between primary and recurrent breast cancer: the Breast Recurrence In Tissues Study (BRITS)

IntroductionImmunohistochemistry of primary breast cancer is routinely used to guide changes in therapy at the time of relapse. Retrospective reviews suggest that the estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2 (HER2) receptor may differ between the primary and loco-regional recurrence or distant metastases. The Breast Recurrence In Tissues Study (BRITS) was a large, multicentre, prospective study to examine changes in ER, PR and HER2.MethodsMatched primary and recurrent breast cancer tissue samples were prospectively collected from 205 women attending 20 institutions. Central laboratory immunohistochemical analysis of core biopsies and tissue microarrays of ER and PR using the Allred and Quickscore methods and HER2 (confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) for HER2 2+) were performed.ResultsFrom 205 consenting women, 18 (8.8%) did not have recurrent disease on biopsy, 35 were ineligible, 13 had insufficient paired tissue and 2 were excluded for safety reasons. Paired samples from 137 women, mean age 62.6 years (range 27-87 years), 83/137 (60.6%) postmenopausal with a median 92.2 months (range 5-327 months) from primary to recurrence and 88 (64.2%) as locoregional recurrence were successfully analysed. A switch in receptor status, in either direction, by Allred score, was identified for ER in 14 patients (10.2%; P = 0.983 Wilcoxon sign rank test), PR in 34 (24.8%; P = 0.003 Wilcoxon sign rank test) and HER2 in 4 (2.9%; P = 0.074 Wilcoxon sign rank test). There was no difference between locoregional or distant recurrence in the proportion who switched. The switch in receptor status led to a change in the subsequent treatment plan for 24 patients (17.5%).ConclusionsThis prospective study confirms retrospective evidence that the management of relapsed breast cancer should include confirmatory tissue sampling and identify switches of ER, PR or HER2 which change therapeutic management for one in six patients.

Proliferation and Apoptosis as Markers of Benefit in Neoadjuvant Endocrine Therapy of Breast Cancer

The study of changes in proliferation as a marker of treatment benefit during presurgical endocrine treatment of breast cancer has become increasingly popular, particularly using the nuclear marker Ki67, and holds the potential for prioritizing new treatments for full clinical development. There are weakly significant relationships between Ki67 change and clinical response that differ according to data handling. In the neoadjuvant Immediate Preoperative Anastrozole, Tamoxifen, or Combined with Tamoxifen trial, suppression of Ki67 at both 2 and 12 weeks was greater with the aromatase inhibitor anastrozole than with either tamoxifen or the combination of anastrozole and tamoxifen. We report here that absolute values of Ki67 after 2 weeks were also significantly lower with anastrozole than with tamoxifen and the combination. This indicates that it may be possible to make such comparisons using surgical samples only. We argue that these changes in proliferation and concurrent changes in apoptosis may be expected to be more predictive of adjuvant benefit from endocrine therapy than clinical response.

Effects of the addition of gemcitabine, and paclitaxel-first sequencing, in neoadjuvant sequential epirubicin, cyclophosphamide, and paclitaxel for women with high-risk early breast cancer (Neo-tAnGo): an open-label, 2×2 factorial randomised phase 3 trial

BACKGROUND Anthracyclines and taxanes have been the standard neoadjuvant chemotherapies for breast cancer in the past decade. We aimed to assess safety and efficacy of the addition of gemcitabine to accelerated paclitaxel with epirubicin and cyclophosphamide, and also the effect of sequencing the blocks of epirubicin and cyclophosphamide and paclitaxel (with or without gemcitabine). METHODS In our randomised, open-label, 2×2 factorial phase 3 trial (Neo-tAnGo), we enrolled women (aged >18 years) with newly diagnosed breast cancer (tumour size >20 mm) at 57 centres in the UK. Patients were randomly assigned via a central randomisation procedure to epirubicin and cyclophosphamide then paclitaxel (with or without gemcitabine) or paclitaxel (with or without gemcitabine) then epirubicin and cyclophosphamide. Four cycles of each component were given. The primary endpoint was pathological complete response (pCR), defined as absence of invasive cancer in the breast and axillary lymph nodes. This study is registered with EudraCT (2004-002356-34), ISRCTN (78234870), and ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT00070278). FINDINGS Between Jan 18, 2005, and Sept 28, 2007, we randomly allocated 831 participants; 207 received epirubicin and cyclophosphamide then paclitaxel; 208 were given paclitaxel then epirubicin and cyclophosphamide; 208 had epirubicin and cyclophosphamide followed by paclitaxel and gemcitabine; and 208 received paclitaxel and gemcitabine then epirubicin and cyclophosphamide. 828 patients were eligible for analysis. Median follow-up was 47 months (IQR 37-51). 207 (25%) patients had inflammatory or locally advanced disease, 169 (20%) patients had tumours larger than 50 mm, 413 (50%) patients had clinical involvement of axillary nodes, 276 (33%) patients had oestrogen receptor (ER)-negative disease, and 191 (27%) patients had HER2-positive disease. Addition of gemcitabine did not increase pCR: 70 (17%, 95% CI 14-21) of 404 patients in the epirubicin and cyclophosphamide then paclitaxel group achieved pCR compared with 71 (17%, 14-21) of 408 patients who received additional gemcitabine (p=0·98). Receipt of a taxane before anthracycline was associated with improved pCR: 82 (20%, 95% CI 16-24) of 406 patients who received paclitaxel with or without gemcitabine followed by epirubicin and cyclophosphamide achieved pCR compared with 59 (15%, 11-18) of 406 patients who received epirubicin and cyclophosphamide first (p=0·03). Grade 3 toxicities were reported at expected levels: 173 (21%) of 812 patients who received treatment and had full treatment details had grade 3 neutropenia, 66 (8%) had infection, 41 (5%) had fatigue, 41 (5%) had muscle and joint pains, 37 (5%) had nausea, 36 (4%) had vomiting, 34 (4%) had neuropathy, 23 (3%) had transaminitis, 16 (2%) had acute hypersensitivity, and 20 (2%) had a rash. 86 (11%) patients had grade 4 neutropenia and 3 (<1%) had grade 4 infection. INTERPRETATION Although addition of gemcitabine to paclitaxel and epirubicin and cyclophosphamide chemotherapy does not improve pCR, sequencing chemotherapy so that taxanes are received before anthracyclines could improve pCR in standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer. FUNDING Cancer Research UK, Eli Lilly, Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Impact of mutational profiles on response of primary oestrogen receptor-positive breast cancers to oestrogen deprivation

Pre-surgical studies allow study of the relationship between mutations and response of oestrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer to aromatase inhibitors (AIs) but have been limited to small biopsies. Here in phase I of this study, we perform exome sequencing on baseline, surgical core-cuts and blood from 60 patients (40 AI treated, 20 controls). In poor responders (based on Ki67 change), we find significantly more somatic mutations than good responders. Subclones exclusive to baseline or surgical cores occur in ∼30% of tumours. In phase II, we combine targeted sequencing on another 28 treated patients with phase I. We find six genes frequently mutated: PIK3CA, TP53, CDH1, MLL3, ABCA13 and FLG with 71% concordance between paired cores. TP53 mutations are associated with poor response. We conclude that multiple biopsies are essential for confident mutational profiling of ER+ breast cancer and TP53 mutations are associated with resistance to oestrogen deprivation therapy.

A randomised comparative trial of infusional ECisF versus conventional FEC as adjuvant chemotherapy in early breast cancer: the TRAFIC trial

BACKGROUND The epirubicin with cisplatin and infusional 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) (ECisF) regimen was found to be highly active in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer and as neoadjuvant therapy. The UK TRAFIC (trial of adjuvant 5-FU infusional chemotherapy) trial (CRUK/95/007) compared this schedule with 5-FU, epirubicin and cyclophosphamide (FEC60) as adjuvant therapy in patients with early breast cancer. METHODS In this multicentre, open-label, phase III randomised controlled trial, 349 women were randomly assigned to receive i.v. ECisF [epirubicin 60 mg/m(2), day 1, cisplatin 60 mg/m(2), day 1 and 5-FU 200 mg/m(2) by daily 24-h infusion (n = 172)] or FEC [5-FU 600 mg/m(2), day 1, epirubicin 60 mg/m(2), day 1 and cyclophosphamide 600 mg/m(2), day 1 (n = 177)]. Both treatments were delivered every 3 weeks for six cycles. The primary end point was relapse-free interval (RFI). TRAFIC is registered as an International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial (ISRCTN 83324925). RESULTS All randomised patients were included in the intent-to-treat population. With a median follow-up of 112 months, there was no significant difference in RFI between the treatment groups [hazard ratio 0.84 (95% confidence interval 0.60-1.19); P = 0.33]. Toxic effects were more frequent in patients allocated to ECisF. CONCLUSIONS While limited by size, TRAFIC has long follow-up. No evidence of a clinically worthwhile benefit for the infusional treatment compared with standard treatment was observed which would justify further investigation or widespread use.

Abstract P2-05-01: Clinico-pathological relationships with Ki67 in POETIC (CRUK/07/015) – Critical lessons for assessing Ki67 for prognosis and as a pharmacodynamic marker

Background Higher levels of the proliferation marker Ki67 at breast cancer (BC) diagnosis are increasingly recognised to indicate poorer prognosis. Change in ΔKi67 in response to endocrine treatment reflects response. The precise relationship between Ki67 and other clinico-path factors and how associations are affected by short exposure to aromatase inhibitor (AI) has been unclear. Methods POETIC was a UK-wide, phase III, randomised trial which tested perioperative use of AI (anastrozole (A), letrozole (L)) in postmenopausal women with early BC (Dowsett JNCI Monogr 2011). Ki67 was measured in a single central lab at diagnosis (B=baseline) and 2 weeks later at surgery (S) allowing in vivo assessment of AI sensitivity. POETIC recruited 4483 women from 130 UK centres. Paired biopsies were available for 96%. Relationship between Ki67 and clinico-path factors is described by summary statistics (median) and independent associations explored in multivariable linear regression models (MVM). Analyses of Ki67 at S and ΔKi67 (reduction) were adjusted for B Ki67 and surgical sample type. Results Absolute Ki67 (B) was associated with each classic prognostic factor. Factors affecting ΔKi67 in control pts were Ki67 (B), grade (B) and surgical sample type (core cut 4.1%; excision 17.7% p Summary POETIC provides the largest multi-centre series of women in whom centrally assessed Ki67 has been correlated with classic clinico-path factors and impact of short term AI exposure explored. Choice of AI and surgical sample type are both dictated by participating site and their inter-relationship requires further review. Whether the greater suppression of Ki67 following L, a drug associated with better E2 suppression and aromatisation than A has clinical consequences is beyond the scope of this work. Relationships found (e.g. sample type, grade) are critical for interpretation of studies using Ki67 for prognosis and ΔKi67 as a pharmacodynamic response marker. Citation Format: Bliss JM, Morden J, Evans A, Holcombe C, Horgan K, Mallon E, Raghavan V, Skene A, Dodson A, Hills M, Detre S, Zabaglo L, Graf M, Banerji J, Gillman A, Robertson J, Dowsett M, Smith I, On Behalf of the POETIC Trialists. Clinico-pathological relationships with Ki67 in POETIC (CRUK/07/015) – Critical lessons for assessing Ki67 for prognosis and as a pharmacodynamic marker [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2016 Dec 6-10; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P2-05-01.

Early Acquired Resistance to Endocrine Therapy: Extending the Neoadjuvant Model.

Background: Neoadjuvant endocrine therapy allows biological studies of de novo response and resistance but not of acquired resistance based on clinical endpoints as surgery is usually carried out after around 4 months. Response is associated with a significant fall in Ki67 (proliferation) after 2 weeks treatment. However, at 12/16 weeks, c.15% of tumours show recovery of Ki67. We hypothesized that this recovery reflected rapidly acquired treatment resistance and have assessed its clinical relevance and association with tumour biomarkers. Methods: Ki67, ER, PgR and HER-2 (with FISH for 2+ cases) IHC measurements taken at baseline, 2 weeks and 12/16 weeks during neoadjuvant aromatase inhibitor (AI) treatment were available from three previously reported clinical trials [1-3] for a total of 177 ER+ patients. To allow pooling of data, ER and PgR levels were expressed as Allred scores. Long-term clinical follow-up data were available for 142 patients who received endocrine therapy within the IMPACT trial. Categories of response/resistance based on Ki67 change were created and patients classified accordingly: de novo resistance ( 50% decrease in Ki67 from baseline to 2 weeks, but overall fall at 12/16 weeks 50% decrease in Ki67 from baseline to 2 weeks and overall fall >50%). Results: Patients defined as showing acquired resistance had significantly worse RFS than those defined as showing maintained response (HR: 3.73, 95%CI: 1.18-11.79, p=0.025) and very similar to those with de novo resistance (HR: 3.66, 95% CI: 1.41-9.50, p=0.008). More HER-2+ cases showed Ki67 recovery than would be expected by chance (acquired resistance: 5/19 HER-2+, maintained response: 5/100 HER-2+; p=0.02). There was a weak suggestion that pre-treatment ER level may be lower for patients showing Ki67 recovery than those with persistent response (p=0.11), but no evidence was seen for an effect of pre-treatment PgR level (p=0.52). Conclusions: Tumours that exhibit an early Ki67 fall followed by Ki67 recovery at 12/16 weeks are associated with poorer RFS than those showing maintained suppression of Ki67 suggesting that Ki67 may act as a valid intermediate marker of acquired resistance. HER-2 positivity is associated with development of early acquired Ki67-based resistance, but other mechanisms for early acquired resistance exist.Supported by The Mary-Jean Mitchell Green Foundation.[1] Dowsett M et al. , J Clin Oncol 2005. 23(11): 2477-92[2] Smith IE et al ., J Clin Oncol 2007. 25(25): 3816-22[3] Miller WR et al ., J Clin Oncol 2009. 27(9): 1382-7 Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(24 Suppl):Abstract nr 2005.