Open Access Pub publishes peer-reviewed, free-to-read open-access articles. Showing
articles matching breast cancer — open any to read the full text,
or download the PDF or XML.
Jan 2026 DOI 10.14302/issn.2574-612X.ijpr-25-5920
The present study examines the effectiveness of Cognitive-Analytic Therapy (CAT) in women diagnosed with breast cancer and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) on reducing PTSD symptomatology and improving their mental health state (depression, self-esteem, post- traumatic growth, quality of life, therapeutic alliance). Additionally, the investigation includes the determination of the demographic, socio-economic and medical factors’ impact on mental health indicators in women with breast cancer and PTSD. The sample was 188 women with breast cancer and PTSD at the Chemotherapy Unit of ‘Agios Andreas’ General Hospital in Patras. The questionnaire data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical analysis in order to determine any statistically significant correlations between the experimental and the control group and between psychological scales and the demographic and socio-economic factors. The findings confirm the effectiveness of CAT in women with breast cancer and PTSD in reducing PTSD and depressive symptoms, improving self-esteem and quality of life, achieving greater post-traumatic growth, and fostering a better therapeutic relationship with the therapist. The demographic, socio-economic and medical factors examined affected dissimilarly each psychological scale, as statistically significant associations were found with some scales but not with others.
May 2023
Background and Aim Breast cancer is the second most common cause of brain metastases after lung cancer. However, the incidence of cerebral metastases from breast cancer has increased during the last years. The purpose of this study is to determine the prognostic value of chemotherapy after whole-brain radiotherapy for patients with brain metastases from breast cancer. Methods We analyzed retrospectively 63 records of patients diagnosed with brain metastases from breast cancer and treated in the radiotherapy department at the Salah Azaiz Institute of oncology over a 5-year period between 2007 and 2011. All patients received whole-brain radiotherapy. Only 4 patients had surgical resection of the metastases before radiotherapy and 36.5% of patients received systemic treatment after irradiation. Results Overall survival was 19% at 1-year and median survival was 4,5 months. Univariate analysis indicated that systemic treatment after irradiation was correlated significantly with longer survival. (p=0,046). Conclusion Determining prognostic factors might help optimize individual treatment for metastatic breast cancer. The results of our study suggest that chemotherapy is more effective on brain metastases after irradiation. This can be explained by the fragilization of the blood-brain barrier by radiation and subsequently a better passage of cytotoxic agents.
Dec 2020
Background In Brunei Darussalam, cancer has been the leading cause of death, and breast cancer as the leading cause of death among women. With a nationally-funded cancer treatment, it is essential to determine the survival rates among breast cancer patients which can serve as a basis for comparison across timelines with the end view of improving healthcare delivery, hence, survival among the patient population. Methods This study was conducted from January – May 2019. Medical records data were abstracted for breast cancer patients treated between years 2011-2016 in a tertiary specialist cancer center. Kaplan-Meier Product Limit estimation was used for the over-all observed survival rates within 5 years after diagnosis. STATA Version 15 was used for statistical analysis. Ethical approval was obtained. Results Over-all, five-year breast cancer survival rates was favorable at 88.89%. . Survival rates according to TNM staging showed lowest at stage IV at 59% five-year survival. Survival rates according to age at the time of diagnosis showed favorable survival across age groups except for age groups 30-39 years and 80 years old and above. Survival rates according to treatment combinations were highest in surgery (mastectomy) and hormonal therapy. Conclusions The Center’s 5-year breast cancer survival rates were relatively high and comparable to survival figures of developed countries. The Center’s high survival rates could have been related to the ‘treatment factors’ due to the following: prompt treatment of early stage breast cancer stages, responsive coordination, government-funded cancer treatment which allowed patients uninterrupted, free access to standard treatment.
Sep 2020 DOI 10.14302/issn.2372-6601.jhor-20-3544
In Mexico, breast cancer is the second most common site of cancer in women and in most developed and emerging countries. Incidence rates have increased in many countries, although in some, mortality has remained stable with a slight reduction. There are geographical differences with high rates of breast cancer in North America, Northern Europe and Oceania, and lower rates in Central and South America, South and East Europe; in addition to emerging countries in Africa and Asia. Genetic and hereditary factors constitute less than 5% of breast cancer cases and other risk factors for breast cancer are related to the reproductive life of the woman. This work was carried out in order to determine if the risk factors considered classic are really associated with breast cancer in our sample of Mexican women studied.
Aug 2019 DOI 10.14302/issn.2576-6694.jbbs-19-2953
Breast cancer has high incidence in women from both developed and developing countries. Approximately 2 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018. In Asia, unfortunately Pakistan leads the highest number of breast cancer patients. Various treatment strategies are present but they are not well developed. There is a great need to develop effective methods for early detection and treatment of the disease. For cancer treatment chemotherapeutic interventions have always been a method of choice. One of the mechanisms involved in cancerous cell proliferation is Mevalonate (MVA) pathway. It is hypothesized that arresting MVA pathway leads to cell death hence cancer cell growth is suppressed. Various inhibitors of MVA pathway have been studied that can suppress cell proliferation. Nitrogen containing bisphosphonates are MVA pathway inhibitor and clinically used for treatment of bone diseases. Their anticancer efficacy is also reported. Current study focuses on alendronate, a nitrogen containing bisphosphonate to examine their anticancer effect on breast cancer cell line. Results of this study may help in addition of new anticancer drug for breast cancer.
Apr 2019 DOI 10.14302/issn.2328-0182.japst-19-2759
Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide, and there is a constant need for new treatment strategies. Sesquiterpene lactones containing a 3-methylenedihydrofuran-2(3H)-one (or α-methylene-γ-lactone) moiety, for example damsin (1), are Michael acceptors that affect biological processes such as cell proliferation, death/apoptosis, and cell migration, by interfering with cell signalling pathways. Although the reactivity of the α-methylene-γ-lactone moiety is important for these effects, the Michael addition is reversible and it can be assumed that also other parts of the molecules will moderate any given biological activity. In this investigation, the cytotoxicity of 23 -methylene--lactones towards normal breast epithelial MCF-10A cells as well as breast cancer JIMT-1 cells is compared. Most of the investigated compounds are semisynthetic derivatives prepared by the condensation of the natural product damsin (1) with aldehydes. The two cell lines were treated with various concentrations of the compounds in dose response assays, and the 50 % inhibitory concentration (IC50) was determined from dose response curves. The IC50 values were found to depend strongly on the overall structure. The ratio between the IC50 values for MCF-10A and JIMT-1 cells, as a measure for the selectivity of a compound to kill cancer cells, was calculated, and found to vary between just over 1 to more than 10. The most potent derivatives formed from the condensation of 1 with aromatic aldehydes towards JIMT-1 cells are 3a and 3i, both with ratios between the IC50 values for MCF-10A and JIMT-1 cells close to 5. Also some aldol condensation products with acyclic aldehydes, i.e. 3r and 3u, were equally potent, and the latter showed the highest selectivity (ratio > 10). Structure-activity relationships that may explain the observed differences in potency and selectivity are discussed.
Dec 2018 DOI 10.14302/issn.2641-5526.jmid-18-2488
Background: Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) is a type of breast cancer with very bad prognosis. Predicting the histological grade (HG) and the lymph nodes metastasis is crucial for developing more suitable treatment strategies. Methods: We present the main clinical and pathological variables to predict the histological grade and lymph nodes metastasis via novel machine learning techniques. These variables are currently being used for prognosis and treatment in medical practice. This analysis was performed using a database of 102 Caucasian women diagnosed with TNBC. The results were cross-validated using random simulations of this dataset. Results: HG was predicted with an accuracy of 93.8% using a list of 6 prognostic variables with significant implications: Ki67 expression, use of Oral contraceptives, Col11A1 expression, Col11A1 score, E-cad truncated and Tumor size. The lymph nodes metastasis was predicted with an accuracy of almost 85% using only 6 prognostic variables: Vascular invasion, Tumor size, Perineural invasion, Age at diagnosis, Ki67 expression, and Col11A1 score. This analysis also served to establish the median signatures of the groups with and without lymph node metastasis, and proved the existence of a kind of small-size tumors (around 2.15 cm) with lymph node metastasis but not showing vascular and perineural invasions and higher protein Col11A1 score. Besides, these signatures proved to be very stable. Conclusions: The additional information conveyed by the prognostic variables found in these two classification problems provides new insight about the genesis and progression of this disease and can be used in medical practice to improve decisions in patient diagnosis and further treatment.
Aug 2018 DOI 10.14302/issn.2639-1716.jn-18-2208
Breast cancer (BC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in young to middle-aged women worldwide. Moreover, the survival rate in BC-patients is only 20% when associated with metastatic disease. The high mortality rate observed in BC women with metastatic disease has precipitated a major challenge revealing an unmet need to develop new therapeutic strategies in treating metastatic cancer. One such approach has involved utilization of chemokines and their receptors as therapeutic targets for cancer metastasis. It has been established that a definitive correlation exists between overexpressed CXCR4 malignant cell receptors and cancer cell growth, invasion, and migration. It is also widely accepted that the CXCR4 receptor, complexed to its CXCL12 ligand, plays a major role in establishing migratory pathway gradients for cancer cells migrating to distant tissues/organ sites. It would follow that chemokine decoy ligands, such as peptide antagonists and inhibitors, could serve to induce receptor blockade and impede subsequent intracellular signaling. Such ligands, synthetic and natural, reportedly contribute to reducing cancer cell growth, invasion, adherence, and migration. The present commentary describes several existing synthetic CXCR4 receptor-ligand peptide antagonists and presents a strategy to develop naturally-occurring human protein-derived peptide candidates.
Jun 2018 DOI 10.14302/issn.2574-612X.ijpr-18-2110
Purpose: There are nearly 170,000 new cases of breast cancer in China every year, and this number is showing an increasing trend. Mental health plays an important role in promoting the physical rehabilitation of patients. Therefore, attention paid to their psychological problems needs to be reinforced. The current study aims to investigate the mental health states of the breast cancer patients and provides the references for their psychosomatic rehabilitation in the future work. Methods: A total of 643 breast cancer patients completed the whole study. A questionnaire survey on anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and posttraumatic growth (PTG) was conducted in Jiangsu Women and Children Health Hospital. Results: 13.53% breast cancer patients had anxiety; 21.5% had depression; the prevalence of PTSD was 7.15%, while the prevalence of PTG was 26.12%; Anxiety levels in older patients were significantly lower than those in the other two groups; PTG levels in older patients were significantly lower than those in the other two groups. Conclusion: Breast cancer patients have certain emotional distress and stress symptoms, but they also experience psychologically positive changes. And age shows various differences on anxiety and PTG. Clinical medical personnel should pay attention to the patient's psychological rehabilitation when concerning about the physical rehabilitation of patients. Patients in different ages have different mental health problems, thus the medical staff shall provide differential nursing plans for them.
Jan 2018
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide. In the United States, is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women. In Puerto Rico between 2008 and 2012, breast cancer was the most diagnosed type of cancer and the leading cause of cancer deaths among women. This is a case of 54 years old female diagnosed with stage IV right breast carcinoma. The patient complaints were weakness and a right breast ulcer. She started a metabolic correction therapy, which consisted of high intravenous vitamin C infusions, a nutritional supplementation plan, and Paleolithic diet. During treatment, both Glycohemoglobin and Carcinoembryonic Antigen levels decreased significantly, the right breast ulcer decreased in size, and the patient’s quality of life improved. Over the years, vitamin C studies have demonstrated a cytotoxic action against malignant cells. Based on the results from this case, we advocate continue studying possible adjuvant treatments for cancer patients, involving IV infusions of vitamin C and metabolic correction plans.
Sep 2017 DOI 10.14302/issn.2574-612X.ijpr-17-1746
Objective: Aim of this study was to assess appraisal and utilization of psycho-oncological care of Turkish female breast cancer patients in Germany. The presented results are part of a larger study about care of female German and Turkish cancer patients in Germany (4B-study). Methods: In this qualitative study semi-structured face to face interviews were conducted with Turkish breast cancer patients in Germany. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed in Turkish by two Turkish speaking researchers via content analysis using MAXQDA qualitative analysis software (version 11). Results were discussed among a bilingual research team. Selected citations were translated. Results: Turkish patients showed a great need for support, particularly emotional and informational support. However, the available psycho-oncological care was rarely used due to lack of information, prejudice, language and cultural barriers. A missing belief in effectiveness of psycho-oncological care was also noted. Conclusions: According to this study, psycho-oncological services do not adequately correspond to the needs of Turkish breast cancer patients. If confirmed in more extensive studies, these findings call for the development of migrant-sensitive approaches and therapeutic action to provide ease to cancer patients. Additionally, prejudice against psycho-oncological care needs to be reduced in the Turkish community.
May 2014 DOI 10.14302/issn.2572-3030.jcgb-13-369
Insulin receptor substrate (IRS) 1 and 2 are downstream signaling proteins that influence breast pathophysiology. IRS-1 promotes carcinoma cell proliferation; whereas IRS-2 regulates cell motility, invasion, and glycolysis. Our lab has shown that distinct cellular localization of IRS-2 also plays a role in carcinoma cell function. Oncotype DX (Genomic Health) (ODX) is a 21-gene expression profile used to classify carcinomas with low, intermediate, and high risk recurrence scores (RS). Our aim is to correlate expression and cellular localization of IRS proteins in breast carcinomas with their ODX RS. 97 breast carcinomas sent for ODX testing from 2006-2009 were collected and grouped according to their RS (low, intermediate or high). Immunohistochemistry for IRS-1/-2 was performed. Specific criteria were used to evaluate IRS staining patterns. Follow-up data, ranging from 3-6 years, was available. Statistical analysis was performed to correlate staining patterns of IRS-1/-2 with the three RS groups. IRS-1 staining, predominantly nuclear, did not significantly correlate with RS (P=.5645). IRS-2 expression patterns did show statistical significance amongst the three RS groups (P=.0371). Tumors with intermediate and low RS were more likely to exhibit punctate and diffuse cytoplasmic expression of IRS-2, and cell membrane expression was uncommon in this group. Expression and cellular localization of IRS proteins play an important role in breast cancer cell biology, and expression patterns for IRS-2 do demonstrate a significant correlation with ODX RS. Further studies are required to elucidate the significance of cellular localization of IRS-1/-2 proteins in breast carcinoma cells and their relationship to ODX scores.
Oct 2022 DOI 10.14302/issn.2641-5518.jcci-22-4323
Introduction Primary sarcomas of the breast are <0.1% of all malignant tumours of the breast. To date, there are 13 major breast sarcoma series in English literature. This study adds to these series characterizing primary breast sarcoma among Philippine patients. Methods All breast biopsies from the pathology records of the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) were searched for breast sarcoma cases from January 2000 to December 2010. Metaplastic carcinomas and phyllodes tumors were excluded. Results There were 52 patients (45 female, 7 male) ranging in age 25-83 years (median 46 years). Majority had lump, ten cases with pain. No history of previous cancer was given. No history of prior radiation was found. Histopathological diagnoses were spindle cell sarcoma (n=13), fibrosarcoma (n=6), liposarcoma (n=6), MPNST (n=5), stromal sarcoma (n=5), angiosarcoma (n=4), MFH (n=4), leiomyosarcoma (n=3), rhabdomyosarcoma (n=3), chondrosarcoma (n=2), and synovial sarcoma (n=1). Tumors were with grade 1 (n=18), grade 2 (n=8), and grade 3 (n=10). Necrosis was noted in 6 cases. Simple mastectomy was done in 19 cases (37%), MRM in 31 cases (59%), while 2 far advanced had no surgery (3%). None had adjuvant radiotherapy or chemotherapy. The duration of follow-up for 45 patients ranged from 1 – 117 months, excluding those who were lost to follow-up. All 15 deaths were due to progressive disease. Recurrences were observed in 9 patients. The disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was 73%and 75%, respectively. On multivariate analysis, DFS and OS were significantly correlated with size (HR=113.63; p=0.019 and HR=77.36; p=0.037), grade (HR=20.73 ; p=0.003andHR= 39.57; p= 0.004), and having a histology of angiosarcoma (HR=35.20 ; p=0.005and HR= 50.74; p=0.007), respectively. Conclusion Sarcoma remains an important clinical entity among primary breast cancers.
Aug 2021 DOI 10.14302/issn.2372-6601.jhor-21-3903
A 61 years female patient with known diagnosis of the breast cancer in remission for more than 10 years has Renaud’s disease. During her work up for lupus and lupus anticoagulant which both were negative a prolonged thrombin time was noted which was done by mistake. She has no history of bleeding or thrombosis and last recent surgery was 5 years ago for spinal stenosis and was uncomplicated. Her clinical examination is normal without evidence of any spontaneous bruises but colder hands. The thrombin time was greater than 125 seconds on two different occasions and correction of it by addition of normal plasma was down to 56 seconds and was thus incomplete. Her prothrombin time and PTT were normal and there was no evidence of FDP or D-Dimers. There was no evidence of circulating heparins. The fibrinogen level was normal. The para proteinmia was excluded by normal serum protein electrophoresis and by immunofixation . Thus it is felt that this patient has dysfibrinogenemia or hypo dysfibrinogenemia without bleeding or thrombotic complication. The literature review shows approximately 55% of dysfibrinogenemia patients do not have bleeding or thrombotic complications.
Mar 2021 DOI 10.14302/issn.2474-3585.jpmc-20-3557
Background Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer affecting women globally. It has shown increasing morbidity and mortality rates over the past years. Several screening methods ranging from simple breast self-examination to a highly sensitive test procedures for early detection and treatment are available, but uptake is a challenge. Lack of a national screening programme in the country makes available regional screening programme unsuccessful. This study aims to assess the factors affecting the uptake of breast cancer screening programme among female staff in a tertiary hospital, Southwest Nigeria. Method This descriptive cross-sectional study involves 375 participants selected by a stratified random sampling technique, with proportional allocation to population size and the use of a semi-structured questionnaire. Respondents were questioned on their basic knowledge of breast cancer symptoms, risk factors and treatment, over a score of 50 and above, were set as the cut-off mark to determine good knowledge of breast cancer. Patients attitudes towards breast cancer screening as well as factors affecting uptake were also measured. Descriptive statistical analysis was done using SPSS-20 while the predictors of the uptake of screening were determined using logistic regression at p ≤ 0.05. Results There were 360 respondents, comprising of 13.3% clinical and 86.7% non-clinical female staff within the age bracket of 20 to 58 years (38.2±0.42 years). Out of the respondents, 97.8% have heard about breast cancer but only 52.3% had been screened while 65.5% had “Good knowledge” of breast cancer. Positive attitude to breast cancer screening was displayed in 52.5% while over 90% claimed to be practicing breast self-examination. Only 36.1% of respondents above 40 years old have had mammography done. Most frequent barriers to screening uptake include cost, poor accessibility to screening facilities, shyness (unfamiliar screener), unavailability of female doctors, careless attitude, fear of cancer and other more pressing family problems. Using logistic Regression at p ≤ 0.05, females with a negative attitude, young unmarried (less than 30years) and lack of easy accessibility to screening facilities were significant factors affecting uptake of breast cancer screening services. Conclusion Due to knowledge-uptake gap of breast cancer screening revealed in this study. It is therefore obvious from these findings that a concerted effort is needed to actively remove these barriers by repeated education, training and re-training strategies among health workers and to improve their uptake and level of advocacy and campaign for breast cancer screening among their patients and clients.
Sep 2013 DOI 10.14302/issn.2326-0793.jpgr-13-257
Lapatinib, a small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor is currently used in the treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer. The aim of this study was to further understanding of lapatinib response for the development of novel treatment lapatinib-focussed treatment strategies. HER2-overexpressing SKBR3 breast cancer cells were treated with lapatinib for 12 hours and the resultant proteome analyzed by a comprehensive ion-current-based LC-MS strategy. Among the 1224 unique protein identified from SKBR3 cell lysates, 67 showed a significant change in protein abundance in response to lapatinib. Of these, CENPE a centromeric protein with increased abundance, was chosen for further validation. Knockdown and inhibition of CENPE demonstrated that CENPE enhances SKBR3 cell survival in the presence of lapatinib. Based on this study, CENPE inhibitors may warrant further investigation for use in combination with lapatinib.