ArticleBMC cancer2017
Biopsy of breast cancer metastases: patient characteristics and survival.
Article in BMC cancer, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Circulating Tumor DNA and Survival in Metastatic Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JAMA network open · 2024Pooled it
- Radiolabeled HER2-targeted molecular probes in breast cancer imaging: current knowledge and future prospective.Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology · 2025Review
- Multidisciplinary discussion on phenotypical characterization of metastatic breast cancer and patient pathway optimization from an expert panel across South Italian regions.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Distant Metastases of Breast Cancer Resemble Primary Tumors in Cancer Cell Composition but Differ in Immune Cell Phenotypes.Cancer research · 2025Article
- Evaluation of Approaches for the Assessment of HER2 Expression in Breast Cancer by Radionuclide Imaging Using the Scaffold Protein [Pharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Gene expression profiles of breast cancer metastasis according to organ site.Molecular oncology · 2022Article
- T cell receptor repertoires of ex vivo-expanded tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes from breast cancer patients.Immunologic research · 2020Observational
- HER2 expression patterns in paired primary and metastatic endometrial cancer lesions.British journal of cancer · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDiscordance in hormone receptors (HR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status between primary tumors and metastatic sites for breast cancer is well established. However, it is uncertain which patient-related factors lead to biopsy when metastases are suspected and whether having a biopsy impacts survival.
methodsThe medical charts of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients diagnosed January 2000-August 2014 were retrospectively reviewed. A biopsy was defined as a procedure where tissue was obtained and assessed for both HR and HER2. Both bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to assess patient characteristics related to biopsy and whether having a biopsy was associated with improved survival.
resultsOf 409 patients suspected of having MBC, 165 (40%) had a biopsy, and 34% of these had discordant HR or HER2 status when compared to the initial diagnosis. In multivariate analysis, having a biopsy was associated with: recurrence in years 2010-2014, disease-free interval of > =3 years, stage 0-IIA at presentation, suspected locoregional recurrence, being HR+/HER2-, or missing HR/HER2 at diagnosis. A similar multivariate analysis revealed that having a biopsy was associated with improved survival (HR = 0.67, p = 0.002). The association of biopsy and improved survival was noted in specific subgroups: patients with missing HR and HER2 data at initial diagnosis (p = 0.001), those without metastases in liver, lung or brain (p = 0.001), and being younger than 70 years old at recurrence (p < 0.001).
conclusionsSpecific clinical factors were associated with biopsy at the time of suspected recurrence. Having a biopsy was associated with reduced mortality.
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