Bilateral Choroidal Metastases In Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Radiotherapy And Eribulin For Vision Preservation And Prolong Survival

Introduction: Choroidal metastases are infrequent in breast cancer, but if they present, they usually signify the disseminated disease and poor prognosis. The challenges in treating choroidal metastases are not only to prolong survival but also to preserve vision, improving the quality of life. Case Presentation: Our patient was firstly diagnosed with stage-three triple-negative breast cancer at the age of 32 years. She had surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy with anthracycline regime, as well as adjuvant radiotherapy. Her disease firstly recurred two years later with pleural effusion, but it was controlled with six cycles of docetaxel. She was in remission until ten years later when she presented with a worsening dry cough and progressive blurring of vision in both eyes. CT restaging showed multiple sub-centimeter bilateral lung nodules, singular pleural metastases, and multiple bone metastases. Choroidal metastases were also confirmed with the ophthalmological assessment which includes CT of the orbit. She received short-course palliative radiotherapy followed immediately by eribulin. Then, she started monthly bisphosphonates. She was able to read again four months after radiotherapy, and her vision remains normal to date. The latest PET scans showed no FDG avid disease in the lungs with pleural metastases significantly reduced in size. Bone metastases remain stable and asymptomatic. It has been nearly four years since the diagnosis of choroidal metastases. She is still on eribulin at an adjusted dose and interval. She remains asymptomatic from her bone, lung, and choroidal metastases. Conclusions: Short-course radiotherapy to the orbit, followed by continuous administration of eribulin, can lead to prolonged survival with a good quality of life in triple-negative breast cancer with choroidal metastases

Case Report: An Internal Mammary Rhabdomyosarcoma After Mastectomy and Systemic and Radiation Therapy in a Patient With Breast Cancer

Post-radiation soft tissue sarcomas (PRSTSs) are rare secondary malignancies. In this report, we describe the clinical presentation of a 52-year-old woman who underwent postmastectomy radiation therapy (PMRT) for left-sided breast cancer 2.7 years ago and presented with a left internal mammary mass and left interpectoral nodule on computed tomography. On further evaluation, she was diagnosed with internal mammary rhabdomyosarcoma and interpectoral nodal breast cancer relapse, and was treated with chemotherapy, followed by surgery and endocrine therapy. She developed left pleural metastases and is currently receiving targeted therapy. Internal mammary rhabdomyosarcomas are rare among PRSTSs and pose a diagnostic challenge for patients with breast cancer. Histological evaluation is important for the differential diagnosis of breast cancer relapses with secondary malignancies. The management of post-radiation thoracic rhabdomyosarcomas is challenging, and the prognosis is poor.

Hyperthermic Intrathoracic Chemotherapy (HITOC) after Cytoreductive Surgery for Pleural Malignancies—A Retrospective, Multicentre Study

In the context of quality assurance, the objectives were to describe the surgical treatment and postoperative morbidity (particularly renal insufficiency). A retrospective, multicentre study of patients who underwent cytoreductive surgery (CRS) with cisplatin-based HITOC was performed. The study was funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation (GZ: RI 2905/3-1)). Patients (n = 350) with malignant pleural mesothelioma (n = 261; 75%) and thymic tumours with pleural spread (n = 58; 17%) or pleural metastases (n = 31; 9%) were analyzed. CRS was accomplished by pleurectomy/decortication (P/D: n = 77; 22%), extended P/D (eP/D: n = 263; 75%) or extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP: n = 10; 3%). Patients received cisplatin alone (n = 212; 61%) or cisplatin plus doxorubicin (n = 138; 39%). Low-dose cisplatin (≤125 mg/m2 BSA) was given in 67% of patients (n = 234), and high-dose cisplatin (>125 mg/m2 BSA) was given in 33% of patients (n = 116). Postoperative renal insufficiency appeared in 12% of the patients (n = 41), and 1.4% (n = 5) required temporary dialysis. Surgical revision was necessary in 51 patients (15%). In-hospital mortality was 3.7% (n = 13). Patients receiving high-dose cisplatin were 2.7 times more likely to suffer from renal insufficiency than patients receiving low-dose cisplatin (p = 0.006). The risk for postoperative renal failure is dependent on the intrathoracic cisplatin dosage but was within an acceptable range.

Cytoreductive Thoracic Surgery Combined with Hyperthermic Chemoperfusion for Pleural Malignancies: A Single-Center Experience

<b><i>Background:</i></b> Lung-sparing cytoreductive surgery by extended pleurectomy and decortication (EPD) in combination with hyperthermic intrathoracic chemoperfusion (HITOC) forms a promising treatment strategy for malignant pleural mesothelioma and recurrent pleural thymic malignancies. <b><i>Objectives:</i></b> The objective of this study was to scrutinize the surgical procedure and perioperative patient management with emphasis on perioperative morbidity and local tumor control. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> In 2014, a standardized EPD and HITOC procedure was implemented at the Thoraxklinik Heidelberg. This retrospective analysis included clinical data of consecutive patients with pleural mesothelioma and pleural metastasized malignancies treated by EPD and HITOC. The surgical procedure, perioperative management, lung function data, and progression-free survival (PFS) were analyzed. <b><i>Results:</i></b> In the time range between April 2, 2014 and July 2018, 76 patients with pleural malignancies have been treated with EPD and HITOC, and were analyzed retrospectively. It included 61 patients with pleural mesothelioma and 15 patients with pleural metastases of thymic malignancies (12), non-small cell lung cancer (1), colorectal carcinoma (1), and sarcoma (1). Perioperative morbidity following EPD and HITOC treatments represented 23.7% of overall malignancies, while 30- and 90-day mortality were 0 and 1.3%, respectively. Median PFS lasted 18.4 months for mesothelioma and 72.2 months for thymic malignancies. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Combining EPD with HITOC can be performed in patients with either pleural mesothelioma or pleural metastases resulting in low perioperative morbidity and mortality as well as remarkable local tumor control.

Clinical Study of Recombinant Human Endostatin Combined with Iressa in Targeted Treatment of Patients with Lung Adenocarcinoma with Pleural Metastasis

Objective: To evaluate and comprehensively analyze the clinical efficacy of recombinant human endostatin combined with Iressa targeted therapy in patients with pleural metastasis of lung adenocarcinoma. Methods: The interval of the selected study period span was from January 2017 to April 2021. The sample source of the study was 42 patients with lung adenocarcinoma admitted to hospital. The random number table method was used for study grouping, and they were further divided into study groups (n = 21, 14 cases with pleural metastasis) and control group (n=21, 13 cases with pleural metastasis), all patients received systemic chemotherapy with pemetrexed and cisplatin. Patients with pleural metastases in the control group were injected with 60 mg cisplatin into the thoracic cavity. Patients in the study group were treated with Iressa (gefitinib) targeted therapy if genetic testing showed epidermal growth factor receptor (EGRF) mutations, and patients with pleural metastases were treated with pleural metastasis with Endo (recombinant human endostatin YH-16) to control pleural effusion. Two sets of related indicators were compared and analyzed. Results: Comparing the short-term disease control rate, treatment effectiveness and long-term survival rate between the two groups shows that the study group has more advantages (P<0.05). In the comparison between the two groups of serum markers and related indicators, the study group has more advantages (P<0.05), whereas in the comparison between the two groups in the incidence of adverse reactions, there is no significant difference (P>0.05). Based on statistics of the recurrence rate of pleural fluid in the two groups, the study group is significantly lower than the control group (P<0.05). Conclusion: Recombinant human endostatin combined with Iressa targeted therapy for patients with lung adenocarcinoma with pleural metastasis has significant short-term and long-term effects without serious adverse reactions. It can be fully promoted in medical institutions at all levels.

Outcomes of thymic epithelial tumors (TETs) with pleural metastases: Real-world insight from RYTHMIC.

8578 Background: TETs are rare and potentially aggressive malignancies with high associated prevalence of autoimmune disorders (AIDs). The pleura is the main metastatic site at relapse, referred as Masaoka-Koga stage (MK) IVa. The benefit of surgical management is unknown, so we have collected outcomes of patients with MK IVa TETs in a large prospective database. Methods: RYTHMIC (Réseau tumeurs THYMiques et Cancer) is a French nationwide network mandated to systematically discuss every case of TETs. The database, hosted by IFCT (Intergroupe Francophone de Cancérologie Thoracique), prospectively includes all consecutive pts with a diagnosis of TET discussed in RYTHMIC national or regional tumor boards. We analyzed epidemiologic, clinical and pathological characteristics of patients (pts) with MK IVa TETs. Results: From January 2012 to December 2019, 2909 pts were included in the database, including 182 MK IVa (6.2%). The median age at diagnosis was 63.5 (range 9 to 91). 58/182 (32%) pts reported AIDs, 76% myasthenia gravis. 129/182 pts had synchronous pleural metastasis. 118/182 (65%) tumors were resected, of them 10 (8.4%) had only pericardial metastases. Thymoma (T) B2 rate was 35.6%, B3 17.8% and thymic carcinoma (TC) 13.5%. Induction chemotherapy (CT) was given in 46 (39%) T and 10 (8%) TC with response rate of 50% and 70% respectively. Thymectomy was performed in addition to pleurectomy in 44 pts (37.2%), pericardiectomy in 68 (57.6%), lung resection in 80 (67.8%) or pneumonectomy in 15 (12.7%). Node resection was performed in 57.6% (n = 67), 12 (18%) were positive. The complete resection rate assessed by surgeons was 57% with a median of 15 (0 to 28) resected pleural metastasis. Intrapleural chemotherapy was added for 19 (16%) pts. No mortality was reported 90 days after surgery procedure. Median follow-up was 36 months. Pleural recurrence was seen in 47 (72%) pts. Median disease-free survival (DFS) was 39 vs 16 months in resected vs not resected tumors (p < 0.0001), 5-years overall survival (OS) was 88 vs 66% (p = 0.28), respectively. Risk of relapse decreased by 60% with surgery (HR = 0.4, 95CI (0.25-0.62); p < 0.0001). Conclusions: The prevalence of MK IVa in our cohort was 6.2%. Surgery appears to be a safe and valid option for pts with MK IVa TET at diagnosis.

Pleural Fluid Has Pro-Growth Biological Properties Which Enable Cancer Cell Proliferation

ObjectivesPatients with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) or pleural metastases often present with malignant pleural effusion (MPE). This study aimed to analyze the effect of pleural fluid on cancer cells.Materials and MethodsEstablished patient-derived cancer cell cultures derived from MPE (MPM, breast carcinoma, lung adenocarcinoma) were seeded in 100% pleural fluid (exudate MPM MPE, transudate MPE, non-MPE transudate fluid) and proliferation was monitored. In addition, the establishment of new MPM cell cultures, derived from MPE specimens, was attempted by seeding the cells in 100% MPE fluid.ResultsAll established cancer cell cultures proliferated with similar growth rates in the different types of pleural fluid. Primary MPM cell culture success was similar with MPE fluid as with full culture medium.ConclusionsPleural fluid alone is adequate for cancer cell proliferation in vitro, regardless of the source of pleural fluid. These results support the hypothesis that pleural fluid has important pro-growth biological properties, but the mechanisms for this effect are unclear and likely not malignant effusion specific.