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Due to the lack of molecular targets, triple-negative breast cancers (TNBCs) typically represent a worse prognosis compared to their hormone-positive counterparts. While neoadjuvant chemotherapy has been used for breast cancers for a long time, there is no standard chemotherapy regimen for TNBCs. Cisplatin has generally been regarded as an effective chemotherapy agent against TNBCs. However, here we present a pilot study involving the use of cisplatin in combination with oral capecitabine in the neoadjuvant setting in 16 patients with TNBC. Twelve patients were African American and 4 patients were white. Six patients completed all 4 cycles of chemotherapy, 6 patients completed 3 cycles, and 4 patients completed 2 cycles. A complete clinical response was observed in 2 patients, and 10 patients achieved partial clinical response. One patient had progressive disease, and 3 patients were lost to follow-up or taken off study. Following chemotherapy, 12 patients underwent surgery (7 patients had breast conservation, and 5 patients had a mastectomy). Ten of the 12 patients who had surgery achieved a partial pathologic response and the other 2 patients had complete pathologic response. Grade 3 nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea occurred in 7 patients; 1 patient experienced dehydration and renal failure; and 5 patients had grade 1/2 hand-foot syndrome. There were no grade 4 or 5 toxicities. The response to cisplatin-capecitabine combination chemotherapy in the neoadjuvant setting was suboptimal compared to that with single-agent cisplatin in prior studies. The toxicity profile with this combination was also worse than that of cisplatin alone. Based on our findings, we do not recommend this combination regimen in the neoadjuvant setting for TNBCs. However, future studies analyzing the use of cisplatin with other combinations are warranted.

Desmoid tumors are benign mesenchymal tumors with a strong tendency for local recurrence after surgery. Radiotherapy improves local control following incomplete resection, but nearby organs at risk may limit the dose to the target volume. The patient in this report presented with a recurrent desmoid tumor of the right flank and underwent surgery with microscopically positive margins. Particular problems presented in this case included that the tumor bed was situated in close proximity to the liver and the right kidney and that the right kidney was responsible for 65% of the patient’s renal function. Intensity-modulated radiation therapy plans delivering 54 Gy necessarily exposed the right kidney to a V18 of 98% and the liver to a V30 of 55%. Proton therapy plans significantly reduced the right kidney V18 to 32% and the liver V30 to 28%. In light of this, the proton plan was utilized for treatment of this patient. Proton therapy was tolerated without gastrointestinal discomfort or other complaints. Twenty-four months after initiation of proton therapy, the patient is without clinical or radiographic evidence of disease recurrence. In this setting, the improved dose distribution associated with proton therapy allowed for curative treatment of a patient who arguably could not have been safely treated with intensity-modulated radiation therapy or other methods of conventional radiotherapy.