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Introduction: Despite the large use of nab-paclitaxel as a treatment option in metastatic breast cancer (MBC) across different countries, no definitive data are available in particular clinical situations. Areas covered: Efficacy, safety and schedule issues concerning available literature on nab-paclitaxel in advanced breast cancer and in specific subgroups of patients have been discussed and voted during an International Expert Meeting. Ten expert specialists in oncology, with extensive clinical experience on Nab-P and publications in the field of MBC have been identified. Six scientific areas of interest have been covered, generating 13 specific Statements for Nab-P, after literature review. For efficacy issues, a summary of research quality was performed adopting the GRADE algorithm for evidence scoring. The panel members were invited to express their opinion on the statements, in case of disagreement all the controversial opinions and the relative motivations have been made public. Expert opinion: Consensus was reached in 30.8% of the Nab-P statements, mainly those regarding safety issues, whereas ones regarding efficacy and schedule still remain controversial areas, requiring further data originated by the literature.

Background: Neoadjuvant therapy produces high rates of pathological complete response (pCR) and is the standard of care in HER2 positive breast cancer; however, the optimal treatment regimen remains to be established. Methods: In this randomized phase II study patients ≥18 years with HER2 positive breast cancer > 20mm or verified lymph node metastases were randomized to 6 courses of docetaxel, trastuzumab and pertuzumab (DTP, group A) or trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1, group B), q 21 days. The protocol allowed switch to the competing treatment upon lack of response or drug-related severe toxicity. Patients received postoperative epirubicin+cyclophosphamide, trastuzumab for a total of one year and endocrine therapy. Accrual was completed in October 2018 after randomization of 202 patients, data on pCR were available for 190 at the time for this abstract submission. Median age, 52 years (26-74), menopausal status, histological type and grade were well balanced between the treatment groups. 62.6% of the tumors were hormone receptor (HR) positive. Results: Primary endpoint was pathological objective response. 190 patients completed the protocol-specified preoperative treatment. pCR was achieved in 45.3% of patients, 46.4% in patients treated with DTP and 44.1% with T-DM1 (chi-sq., p = 0.75). In HR-positive tumors, pCR was obtained in 35.3% of patients, 35.9% in group A vs. 34.6% in group B (p = 0.87); in HR-negative tumors, the overall pCR rate was 62.0%, 66.7% in group A vs. 57.9% in group B (p = 0.45). Severe (grade 3/4) toxicity was reported at 68 occasions related to DTP, compared with 16 related to T-DM1, 26 vs. 3 caused by febrile neutropenia. Significantly better quality of life was reported by patients treated with T-DM1. Conclusions: Our data on TDM-1 demonstrates similar efficacy and less toxicity, in particular for patients with HER2 and HR positive cancers, being a potential new standard for neoadjuvant therapy. Clinical trial information: NCT02568839., Supplement: S (May 20, 2019)Meeting Abstract: 501

Background: Neoadjuvant therapy combining docetaxel, trastuzumab and pertuzumab (DTP) was compared to trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) in the randomized phase 2 PREDIX HER2 trial. Patients, ≥18 years with HER2 positive breast cancer, ≥20mm or with verified lymph node metastases, were randomized to six courses of DTP (Standard arm) or T-DM1 (Experimental arm). Primary endpoint was pathological objective response to primary medical therapy at post-treatment surgery. Health related quality of life (HRQoL) was a secondary outcome, and is of specific interest as there was no difference between the randomization groups regarding the main endpoint (results presented in a separate abstract sent to ASCO 2019, Bergh et al.). Methods: Of 202 randomized patients, 190 are available for evaluation at this point. HRQoL was measured, using EORTC QLQ-C30 + EORTC QLQ-BR23, at baseline before randomization and after six courses. Results: No differences between the randomization arms were found at baseline. Results after six courses, based on 163 patients (86%) and adjusted to baseline values, revealed statistical significant differences (p≤0.01), favoring the experimental T-DM1 arm on 7 out of 15 of the EORTC QLQ-C30 variables (Physical functioning, Role functioning, Social functioning, Global quality of Life, Fatigue, Dyspnea, and Diarrhea). For the breast cancer specific questionnaire (EORTC-BR23), the experimental arm scored statistically significantly better on 5 out of 7 subscales (Body image, Sexual functioning, Sexual enjoyment, Systemic therapy side effects and Upset by hair loss). All of the statistical significant differences were of moderate or large clinical significance (≥10 scale scores). No differences between the randomization arms were found for the remaining HRQoL variables. Conclusions: The experimental arm reported better HRQoL than the control arm after six courses. Trastuzumab emtansine may be a useful treatment alternative due to better HRQoL and lower toxicity. Cl, Supplement: S (May 20, 2019)Meeting Abstract: 583

Background: Progress in cancer biomarker discovery is dependent on access to high-quality biological materials and high-resolution clinical data from the same cases. To overcome current limitations, a systematic prospective longitudinal sampling of multidisciplinary clinical data, blood and tissue from cancer patients was therefore initiated in 2010 by Uppsala and Umeå Universities and involving their corresponding University Hospitals, which are referral centers for one third of the Swedish population. Material and Methods: Patients with cancer of selected types who are treated at one of the participating hospitals are eligible for inclusion. The healthcare-integrated sampling scheme encompasses clinical data, questionnaires, blood, fresh frozen and formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue specimens, diagnostic slides and radiology bioimaging data. Results: In this ongoing effort, 12,265 patients with brain tumors, breast cancers, colorectal cancers, gynecological cancers, hematological malignancies, lung cancers, neuroendocrine tumors or prostate cancers have been included until the end of 2016. From the 6914 patients included during the first five years, 98% were sampled for blood at diagnosis, 83% had paraffin-embedded and 58% had fresh frozen tissues collected. For Uppsala County, 55% of all cancer patients were included in the cohort. Conclusions: Close collaboration between participating hospitals and universities enabled prospective, longitudinal biobanking of blood and tissues and collection of multidisciplinary clinical data from cancer patients in the U-CAN cohort. Here, we summarize the first five years of operations, present U-CAN as a highly valuable cohort that will contribute to enhanced cancer research and describe the procedures to access samples and data.

Importance: Trastuzumab plus chemotherapy is the standard adjuvant treatment for patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive early breast cancer. While the standard duration of trastuzumab treatment is 12 months, the benefits and harms of trastuzumab continued beyond the chemotherapy are unclear. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of adjuvant trastuzumab continued beyond chemotherapy in women treated with up-front chemotherapy containing a taxane and trastuzumab. Design, Setting, and Participants: Open-label, randomized (1:1) clinical trial including women with HER2-positive breast cancer. Chemotherapy was identical in the 2 groups, consisting of 3 cycles of 3-weekly docetaxel (either 80 or 100 mg/m2) plus trastuzumab for 9 weeks, followed by 3 cycles of fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide. Thereafter, no trastuzumab was administered in the 9-week group, whereas controls received trastuzumab to complete 1 year of administration. Disease-free survival (DFS) was compared between the groups using a Cox model and the noninferiority approach. The estimated sample size was 2168 patients (1-sided testing, with a relative noninferiority margin of 1.3). From January 3, 2008, to December 16, 2014, 2176 patients were accrued from 7 countries. Intervention: Docetaxel plus trastuzumab for 9 weeks, followed by 3 cycles of fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide in both groups. Controls continued trastuzumab to 1 year. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary objective was DFS; secondary objectives included distant disease–free survival, overall survival, cardiac DFS, and safety. Results: In the 2174 women analyzed, median age was 56 (interquartile range [IQR], 48-64) years. The median follow-up was 5.2 (IQR, 3.8-6.7) years. Noninferiority of the 9-week treatment could not be demonstrated for DFS (hazard ratio, 1.39; 2-sided 90% CI, 1.12-1.72). Distant disease–free survival and overall survival did not differ substantially be

Introduction: Adjuvant endocrine therapy improves recurrence-free and overall survival in primary breast cancer. However, not all patients complete their planned treatment, mostly because of side-effects. The aim of this study was to examine the adherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy in a cohort of primary breast cancer patients in Region Jonkoping County, Sweden, after 3 and 5 years. Material and methods: The Swedish Breast Cancer Register was used to identify patients diagnosed with hormone receptor positive breast cancer in Region Jonkoping County between 2009 and 2012. Adherence was evaluated based on data from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register, and Medication Possession Ratio (MPR), defined as the days' supply of medication during the period from the first dispensing till the last dispensing in the time period (3 and 5 years), divided by number of days. Adherence was defined as MPR >= 80%. Regression analyses were used to identify subgroups associated with adherence; age, type of endocrine treatment, additional adjuvant therapy, and hospital responsible for the follow-up (Eksjo, Jonkoping, and Varnamo). Results: We identified 634 patients who were recommended adjuvant endocrine therapy and to be able to estimate adherence after 3 and 5 years, 488 patients were included in the analysis. After 3 years of treatment, 91.2% of the patients (95% confidence interval (0) 88.7-93.6; n = 445), were found to be adherent. The corresponding figure for the 271 patients who had completed 5 years of treatment was 91.5% (95% CI 88.2-94.8; n=248). No subgroups (age, endocrine therapy, radio/chemotherapy, or hospital) were significantly associated with adherence in the multiple logistic regression analysis. Discussion: This study shows substantially higher adherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy than previously reported. Reasons for this could be differences in routines for therapy information and follow-up, but this needs to be further investigated.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to verify if radiotherapy (RT) safely can be omitted in older women treated for estrogen-receptor positive early breast cancer with breast-conserving surgery (BCS) and endocrine therapy (ET). Patients and Methods: Eligibility criteria were: consecutive patients with age >= 65 years, BCS + sentinel node biopsy, clear margins, unifocal T1N0M0 breast cancer tumor, Elston-Ellis histological grade 1 or 2 and estrogen receptor-positive tumor. After informed consent, adjuvant ET for 5 years was prescribed. Primary endpoint was ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR). Secondary endpoints were contralateral breast cancer and overall survival. Results: Between 2006 and 2012, 603 women were included from 14 Swedish centers. Median age was 71.1 years (range 65-90). After a median follow-up of 68 months 16 IBTR (cumulative incidence at five-year follow-up; 1.2%, 95% CI, 0.6% to 2.5%), 6 regional recurrences (one combined with IBTR), 2 distant recurrences (both without IBTR or regional recurrence) and 13 contralateral breast cancers were observed. There were 48 deaths. One death (2.1%) was due to breast cancer and 13 (27.1%) were due to other cancers (2 endometrial cancers). Five-year overall survival was 93.0% (95% CI, 90.5% to 94.9%). Conclusion: BCS and ET without RT seem to be a safe treatment option in women >= 65 years with early breast cancer and favorable histopathology. The risk of IBTR is comparable to the risk of contralateral breast cancer. Moreover, concurrent morbidity dominates over breast cancer as leading cause of death in this cohort with low-risk breast tumors.

Study aim: Retrospective studies have demonstrated a worse outcome in breast cancer patients not developing leukopenia during adjuvant chemotherapy. The SBG 2000-1 is the first randomised trial designed to compare individually dosed chemotherapy without G-CSF support based on grade of toxicity to standard-dosed chemotherapy based on body surface area (BSA). Methods: Patients with early breast cancer were included and received the first cycle of standard FEC (fluorouracil 600 mg/m(2), epirubicin 60 mg/m(2), cyclophosphamide 600 mg/m2). Patients with nadir leukopenia grade 0-2 after first cycle were randomised between either 6 additional courses of tailored FEC with increased doses (E 75-90 mg/m(2), C 900-1200 mg/m(2)) or fixed treatment with 6 standard FEC. Patients with grade 3-4 leukopenia were registered and treated with 6 standard FEC. Primary end-point was distant disease-free survival (DDFS). Results: The study enrolled 1535 patients, of which 1052 patients were randomised to tailored FEC (N = 524) or standard FEC (N = 528), whereas 401 patients with leukopenia grade 3-4 continued standard FEC and formed the registered cohort. Dose escalation did not statistically significantly improve 10-year DDFS (79% and 77%, HR 0.87, CI 0.67-1.14, P = 0.32) or OS (82% and 78%, respectively, HR 0.89, CI 0.57e1.16, P = 0.38). Corresponding estimates for the registered group of patients were DDFS 79% and OS 82%, respectively. Conclusions: The SBG 2000-1 study failed to show a statistically significant improvement of escalated and tailored-dosed chemotherapy compared with standard BSA-based chemotherapy in patients with low haematological toxicity, although all efficacy parameters showed a numerical advantage for tailored treatment.

Background: Selection of systemic therapy for primary breast cancer is currently based on clinical biomarkers along with stage. Novel genomic tests are continuously being introduced as more precise tools for guidance of therapy, although they are often developed for specific patient subgroups. The Sweden Cancerome Analysis Network - Breast (SCAN-B) initiative aims to include all patients with breast cancer for tumour genomic analysis, and to deliver molecular subtype and mutational data back to the treating physician. Methods: An infrastructure for collection of blood and fresh tumour tissue from all patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer was set up in 2010, initially including seven hospitals within the southern Sweden regional catchment area, which has 1.8 million inhabitants. Inclusion of patients was implemented into routine clinical care, with collection of tumour tissue at local pathology departments for transport to the central laboratory, where routines for rapid sample processing, RNA sequencing and biomarker reporting were developed. Results: More than 10 000 patients from nine hospitals have currently consented to inclusion in SCAN-B with high (90 per cent) inclusion rates from both university and secondary hospitals. Tumour samples and successful RNA sequencing arc being obtained from more than 70 per cent of patients, showing excellent representation compared with the national quality registry as a truly population-based cohort. Molecular biomarker reports can be delivered to multidisciplinary conferences within 1 week. Conclusion: Population-based collection of fresh tumour tissue is feasible given a decisive joint effort between academia and collaborative healthcare groups, and with governmental support. An infrastructure for genomic analysis and prompt data output paves the way for novel systemic therapy for patients from all hospitals, irrespective of size anti location.

Supplement: S, Meeting Abstract: GS3-04.Wos title: A randomized phase III study of adjuvant trastuzumab for a duration of 9 weeks versus 1 year, combined with adjuvant taxane-anthracycline chemotherapy, for early HER2-positive breast cancer (the SOLD study)

PURPOSE: In phase I/II-studies radiolabelled ABY-025 Affibody molecules identified human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression in breast cancer metastases using PET and SPECT imaging. Here, we wanted to investigate the utility of a simple intra-image normalization using tumour-to-reference tissue-ratio (T/R) as a HER2 status discrimination strategy to overcome potential issues related to cross-calibration of scanning devices. METHODS: Twenty-three women with pre-diagnosed HER2-positive/negative metastasized breast cancer were scanned with [(111)In]-ABY-025 SPECT/CT (n = 7) or [(68)Ga]-ABY-025 PET/CT (n = 16). Uptake was measured in all metastases and in normal spleen, lung, liver, muscle, and blood pool. Normal tissue uptake variation and T/R-ratios were established for various time points and for two different doses of injected peptide from a total of 94 whole-body image acquisitions. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to verify HER2 expression in 28 biopsied metastases. T/R-ratios were compared to IHC findings to establish the best reference tissue for each modality and each imaging time-point. The impact of shed HER2 in serum was investigated. RESULTS: Spleen was the best reference tissue across modalities, followed by blood pool and lung. Spleen-T/R was highly correlated to PET SUV in metastases after 2 h (r = 0.96, P < 0.001) and reached an accuracy of 100% for discriminating IHC HER2-positive and negative metastases at 4 h (PET) and 24 h (SPECT) after injection. In a single case, shed HER2 resulted in intense tracer retention in blood. In the remaining patients shed HER2 was elevated, but without significant impact on ABY-025 biodistribution. CONCLUSION: T/R-ratios using spleen as reference tissue accurately quantify HER2 expression with radiolabelled ABY-025 imaging in breast cancer metastases with SPECT and PET. Tracer binding to shed HER2 in serum might affect quantification in the extreme case.

Background: Tamoxifen is a well established treatment for breast cancer, but its long-term effects on the incidence of secondary cancers are not fully evaluated.Material and methods: We have studied 4128 postmenopausal patients with early stage breast cancer who were alive and free of breast cancer recurrence after two years of tamoxifen, and who were randomized to receive totally two or five years of therapy.Results: Compared to patients randomized to two years of tamoxifen the incidence of contralateral breast cancer [hazard ratio (HR) 0.73; 95% CI 0.56-0.96] and of lung cancer (HR 0.45; 95% CI 0.27-0.77), especially squamous cell and small cell lung cancer, were reduced in the five-year group, and similar results were seen when restricting the analysis to the 10-year period after treatment stopped. An increased incidence of endometrial cancer was observed in the five-year group, but the excess risk decreased over time.Conclusion: Further studies of the effects of tamoxifen on the risk of different histological types of lung cancer are needed.

IMPORTANCE Capecitabine is not considered a standard agent in the adjuvant treatment of early breast cancer. The results of this study suggest that addition of adjuvant capecitabine to a regimen that contains docetaxel, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide improves survival outcomes of patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of capecitabine on long-term survival outcomes of patients with early breast cancer, particularly in subgroups defined by cancer estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) content, and HER2 content (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2). DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This is an exploratory analysis of the multicenter FinXX randomized clinical trial that accrued 1500 women in Finland and Sweden between January 27, 2004, and May 29, 2007. About half received 3 cycles of docetaxel followed by 3 cycles of cyclophosphamide, epirubicin, and fluorouracil (T+CEF), while the other half received 3 cycles of docetaxel plus capecitabine followed by 3 cycles of cyclophosphamide, epirubicin, and capecitabine (TX+CEX). Data analysis took place between January 27, 2004, and December 31, 2015. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Recurrence-free survival (RFS). RESULTS Following random allocation, 747 women received T+CEF, and 753 women received TX+CEX. Five patients were excluded from the intention-to-treat population (3 had overt distant metastases at the time of randomization; 2 withdrew consent). The median age of the remaining 1495 patients was 53 years at the time of study entry; 157 (11%) had axillary node-negative disease; 1142 (76%) had ER-positive cancer; and 282 (19%) had HER2-positive cancer. The median follow-up time after random allocation was 10.3 years. There was no significant difference in RFS or overall survival between the groups (hazard ratio [HR], 0.88; 95% CI, 0.71-1.08; P = .23; and HR, 0.84, 95% CI, 0.66-1.07; P = .15; respectively). Breast cancer-specific survival tended to favor the

PURPOSE: Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging of HER2 expression could potentially be used to select patients for HER2-targed therapy, predict response based on uptake and be used for monitoring. In this phase I/II study the HER2-binding Affibody molecule ABY-025 was labeled with (68)Ga-gallium ([(68)Ga]ABY-025) for PET to study effect of peptide mass, test-retest variability and correlation of quantified uptake in tumors to histopathology. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Sixteen women with known metastatic breast cancer and on-going treatment were included and underwent FDG PET/CT to identify viable metastases. After iv injection of 212±46 MBq [(68)Ga]ABY-025 whole-body PET was performed at 1, 2 and 4 h. In the first 10 patients (6 with HER2-positive and 4 with HER2-negative primary tumors), [(68)Ga]ABY-025 PET/CT with two different doses of injected peptide was performed one week apart. In the last six patients (5 HER2-positive and 1 HER2-negative primary tumors), repeated [(68)Ga]ABY-025 PET were performed one week apart as a test-retest of uptake in individual lesions. Biopsies from 16 metastases in 12 patients were collected for verification of HER2 expression by immunohistochemistry and in-situ hybridization. RESULTS: Imaging 4h after injection with high peptide content discriminated HER2-positive metastases best (p<0.01). PET SUV correlated with biopsy HER2-scores (r=0.91, p<0.001). Uptake was five times higher in HER2-positive than in HER2-negative lesions with no overlap (p=0.005). The test-retest intra-class correlation was r=0.996. [(68)Ga]ABY-025 PET correctly identified conversion and mixed expression of HER2 and targeted treatment was changed in 3 of the 16 patients. CONCLUSION: [(68)Ga]ABY-025 PET accurately quantifies whole-body HER2-receptor status in metastatic breast cancer.

Ga-68-ABY-025 is a radiolabeled Affibody molecule for in vivo diagnosis of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer tumors with PET. The aim of the present work was to measure the biodistribution and estimate the radiation dosimetry of Ga-68-ABY-025 for 2 different peptide mass doses in a single group of patients using dynamic and serial whole-body PET/CT. Methods: Eight patients with metastatic breast cancer were included. Each patient underwent an abdominal 45-min dynamic and 3 whole-body PET/CT scans at 1, 2, and 4 h after injection of a low peptide dose (LD) and a high peptide dose (HD), with approximately the same amount of radioactivity, in separate investigations 1 wk apart. As input to the absorbed dose calculations, volumes of interest were drawn on all clearly identifiable source organs: liver, kidneys, spleen, descending aorta, and upper large intestine. Absorbed doses were calculated using OLINDA/EXM, version 1.1. Results: Of the major organs, the highest radionuclide uptake at 1, 2, and 4 h after injection was observed in the kidneys and liver. The highest absorbed organ doses were seen in the kidneys, followed by the liver for both LD and HD Ga-68-ABY-025. Absorbed doses to liver and kidneys were slightly but significantly higher for LD. Total effective dose was 0.030 +/- 0.003 mSv/MBq for LD and 0.028 +/- 0.002 mSv/MBq for HD. Conclusion: The effective dose for a typical 200-MBq administration of Ga-68-ABY-025 is 6.0 mSv for LD and 5.6 mSv for HD. Therefore, from a radiation dosimetry point of view, HD is preferred for PET/CT evaluation of HER2-expressing breast cancer tumors. These effective doses are somewhat higher than earlier published values for other Ga-68-labeled tracers, such as 0.021 +/- 0.003 mSv/MBq for Ga-68-DOTATATE and Ga-68-DOTATOC, mainly because of higher uptake in liver and kidney.

Purpose The purpose was to compare progression/regression of arm lymphoedema, health-related quality of life and medical background data among women who discontinued their treatment (non-continued treatment group, NCTG) with these factors among women who continued treatment (continued treatment group, CTG). Methods Seventy-two women were included in the NCTG and 58 women in the CTG. Women in the NCTG were invited to an examination and measurement of affected arm volume at the clinic in 2008. Medical background data and arm volume values, measured using the water displacement method, were collected from patient records and the Breast Cancer Quality Register of the Uppsala Örebro Region. The functional assessment of cancer therapy for breast cancer (FACT-B) was used to assess health-related quality of life in both groups. Results There were no differences with regard to progression/regression of arm lymphoedema or health-related quality of life. The CTG had experienced more advanced disease and received more extensive surgical and oncological treatment. The CTG had significantly larger arm volume due to lymphoedema at diagnosis (mean 422 ml) compared to the NCTG (mean 283 ml; p < 0.001), and at the last visit at the clinic (CTG mean 414 ml versus NCTG mean 239 ml; p < 0.001). Conclusions The results indicate that there might be a spontaneous regression of lymphoedemas in the NCTG but there is a need for more research to make it possible to draw firm conclusions regarding this.

Meeting Abstract: 11067

Meeting Abstract: 156