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Sunil Badve
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Sunil Badve's translational research efforts on efficient treatment of breast cancer have a two-pronged approach; developing novel targeted therapies on the one hand and identifying ineffective therapies on the other. His team is studying the individual biological components that culminate in cancer. Gaining a better understanding of these molecular mechanisms will enable identification of key "nodes" in cellular pathways, which can then be targeted by biological agents leading to better diagnosis and effective treatment of breast cancer.
Dr. Badve demonstrated that the FoxA1 protein plays a critical role in determining responses to anti-hormonal therapy IU patent, being licensed. His group has developed a gene signature useful for predicting brain metastasis (IU patent pending) and is currently, with (IU and non-IU) collaborators, trying to dissect the pathways associated with brain metastasis with the hope of preventing and treating this disease. He is also collaborating with IU and Purdue researchers to develop novel methods of detecting and treating breast cancer.
Dr. Badve's practical application of research into information that can be used by local clinicians in treating breast cancer is another example of how IUPUI's faculty members are TRANSLATING their RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE.
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Item Adjuvant Chemotherapy Guided by a 21-Gene Expression Assay in Breast Cancer(Massachusetts Medical Society, 2018-07) Sparano, Joseph A.; Gray, Robert J.; Makower, Della F.; Pritchard, Kathleen I.; Albain, Kathy S.; Hayes, Daniel F.; Geyer, Charles E., Jr.; Dees, Elizabeth C.; Goetz, Matthew P.; Olson, John A., Jr.; Lively, Tracy; Badve, Sunil S.; Saphner, Thomas J.; Wagner, Lynne I.; Whelan, Timothy J.; Ellis, Matthew J.; Paik, Soonmyung; Wood, William C.; Ravdin, Peter M.; Keane, Maccon M.; Gomez Moreno, Henry L.; Reddy, Pavan S.; Goggins, Timothy F.; Mayer, Ingrid A.; Brufsky, Adam M.; Toppmeyer, Deborah L.; Kaklamani, Virginia G.; Berenberg, Jeffery L.; Abrams, Jeffrey; Sledge, George W., Jr.; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of MedicineBACKGROUND The recurrence score based on the 21-gene breast cancer assay predicts chemotherapy benefit if it is high and a low risk of recurrence in the absence of chemotherapy if it is low; however, there is uncertainty about the benefit of chemotherapy for most patients, who have a midrange score. METHODS We performed a prospective trial involving 10,273 women with hormone-receptor–positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)–negative, axillary node–negative breast cancer. Of the 9719 eligible patients with follow-up information, 6711 (69%) had a midrange recurrence score of 11 to 25 and were randomly assigned to receive either chemoendocrine therapy or endocrine therapy alone. The trial was designed to show noninferiority of endocrine therapy alone for invasive disease–free survival (defined as freedom from invasive disease recurrence, second primary cancer, or death). RESULTS Endocrine therapy was noninferior to chemoendocrine therapy in the analysis of invasive disease–free survival (hazard ratio for invasive disease recurrence, second primary cancer, or death [endocrine vs. chemoendocrine therapy], 1.08; 95% confidence interval, 0.94 to 1.24; P=0.26). At 9 years, the two treatment groups had similar rates of invasive disease–free survival (83.3% in the endocrine-therapy group and 84.3% in the chemoendocrine-therapy group), freedom from disease recurrence at a distant site (94.5% and 95.0%) or at a distant or local–regional site (92.2% and 92.9%), and overall survival (93.9% and 93.8%). The chemotherapy benefit for invasive disease–free survival varied with the combination of recurrence score and age (P=0.004), with some benefit of chemotherapy found in women 50 years of age or younger with a recurrence score of 16 to 25. CONCLUSIONS Adjuvant endocrine therapy and chemoendocrine therapy had similar efficacy in women with hormone-receptor–positive, HER2-negative, axillary node–negative breast cancer who had a midrange 21-gene recurrence score, although some benefit of chemotherapy was found in some women 50 years of age or younger.Item Aggressive breast cancer in western Kenya has early onset, high proliferation, and immune cell infiltration(Biomed Central, 2016-03) Sawe, Rispah T.; Kerper, Maggie; Badve, Sunil S.; Li, Jun; Sandoval-Cooper, Mayra; Xie, Jingmeng; Shi, Zonggao; Patel, Kirtika; Chumba, David; Ofulla, Ayub; Prosperi, Jenifer; Taylor, Katherine; Stack, M. Sharon; Mining, Simeon; Littlepage, Laurie E.; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of MedicineBackground Breast cancer incidence and mortality vary significantly among different nations and racial groups. African nations have the highest breast cancer mortality rates in the world, even though the incidence rates are below those of many nations. Differences in disease progression suggest that aggressive breast tumors may harbor a unique molecular signature to promote disease progression. However, few studies have investigated the pathology and clinical markers expressed in breast tissue from regional African patient populations. Methods We collected 68 malignant and 89 non-cancerous samples from Kenyan breast tissue. To characterize the tumors from these patients, we constructed tissue microarrays (TMAs) from these tissues. Sections from these TMAs were stained and analyzed using immunohistochemistry to detect clinical breast cancer markers, including estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), human epidermal growth factor 2 receptor (HER2) status, Ki67, and immune cell markers. Results Thirty-three percent of the tumors were triple negative (ER-, PR-, HER2-), 59 % were ER+, and almost all tumors analyzed were HER2-. Seven percent of the breast cancer patients were male, and 30 % were <40 years old at diagnosis. Cancer tissue had increased immune cell infiltration with recruitment of CD163+ (M2 macrophage), CD25+ (regulatory T lymphocyte), and CD4+ (T helper) cells compared to non-cancer tissue. Conclusions We identified clinical biomarkers that may assist in identifying therapy strategies for breast cancer patients in western Kenya. Estrogen receptor status in particular should lead initial treatment strategies in these breast cancer patients. Increased CD25 expression suggests a need for additional treatment strategies designed to overcome immune suppression by CD25+ cells in order to promote the antitumor activity of CD8+ cytotoxic T cells.Item AKT Alters Genome-Wide Estrogen Receptor α Binding and Impacts Estrogen Signaling in Breast Cancer(American Society for Microbiology, 2008-12) Bhat-Nakshatri, Poornima; Wang, Guohua; Appaiah, Hitesh; Luktuke, Nikhil; Carroll, Jason S.; Geistlinger, Tim R.; Brown, Myles; Badve, Sunil; Liu, Yunlong; Nakshatri, HarikrishnaEstrogen regulates several biological processes through estrogen receptor α (ERα) and ERβ. ERα-estrogen signaling is additionally controlled by extracellular signal activated kinases such as AKT. In this study, we analyzed the effect of AKT on genome-wide ERα binding in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Parental and AKT-overexpressing cells displayed 4,349 and 4,359 ERα binding sites, respectively, with ∼60% overlap. In both cell types, ∼40% of estrogen-regulated genes associate with ERα binding sites; a similar percentage of estrogen-regulated genes are differentially expressed in two cell types. Based on pathway analysis, these differentially estrogen-regulated genes are linked to transforming growth factor β (TGF-β), NF-κB, and E2F pathways. Consistent with this, the two cell types responded differently to TGF-β treatment: parental cells, but not AKT-overexpressing cells, required estrogen to overcome growth inhibition. Combining the ERα DNA-binding pattern with gene expression data from primary tumors revealed specific effects of AKT on ERα binding and estrogen-regulated expression of genes that define prognostic subgroups and tamoxifen sensitivity of ERα-positive breast cancer. These results suggest a unique role of AKT in modulating estrogen signaling in ERα-positive breast cancers and highlights how extracellular signal activated kinases can change the landscape of transcription factor binding to the genome.Item The AKT inhibitor triciribine in combination with paclitaxel has order-specific efficacy against Zfp217-induced breast cancer chemoresistance(Impact Journals, 2017-07-17) Suarez, Christopher D.; Wu, Junmin; Badve, Sunil S.; Sparano, Joseph A.; Kaliney, William; Littlepage, Laurie E.; Medicine, School of MedicineWe previously identified the transcription factor ZNF217 (human) / Zfp217 (mouse) as an oncogene and prognostic indicator of reduced survival, increased metastasis, and reduced response to therapy in breast cancer patients. Here we investigated the role of Zfp217 in chemotherapy resistance. Preclinical animal models of Zfp217 overexpression were treated with a combination therapy of the microtubule inhibitor epothilone B, doxorubicin (Adriamycin), and cyclophosphamide (EAC). Tumors overexpressing Zfp217 increased their tumor burden compared to control tumors after treatment and accumulated a mammary gland progenitor cell population (K8+K14+). To overcome this chemoresistance after ZNF217 overexpression, we treated tumors ± Zfp217 overexpression with paclitaxel and triciribine, a nucleoside analog and AKT inhibitor that kills cells that overexpress ZNF217. Treatment order critically impacted the efficacy of the therapy. Combination treatment of triciribine followed by paclitaxel (TCN→PAC) inhibited tumor burden and increased survival in tumors that overexpressed Zfp217, whereas single agent or combination treatment in the reverse order (PAC→TCN) did not improve response. Analysis of these tumors and patient-derived tumor xenograft tumors treated with the same therapies suggested that Zfp217 overexpression in tumors contributes both to decreased microvessel density and vessel maturity, while TCN→PAC tumors overexpressing Zfp217 showed improved vessel maturity.Item Analytical validation of a standardised scoring protocol for Ki67 immunohistochemistry on breast cancer excision whole sections: an international multicentre collaboration(Wiley, 2019-08) Leung, Samuel C. Y.; Nielsen, Torsten O.; Zabaglo, Lila A.; Arun, Indu; Badve, Sunil S.; Bane, Anita L.; Bartlett, John M. S.; Borgquist, Signe; Chang, Martin C.; Dodson, Andrew; Ehinger, Anna; Fineberg, Susan; Focke, Cornelia M.; Gao, Dongxia; Gown, Allen M.; Gutierrez, Carolina; Hugh, Judith C.; Kos, Zuzana; Lænkholm, Anne-Vibeke; Mastropasqua, Mauro G.; Moriya, Takuya; Nofech-Mozes, Sharon; Osborne, C. Kent; Penault-Llorca, Frédérique M.; Piper, Tammy; Sakatani, Takashi; Salgado, Roberto; Starczynski, Jane; Sugie, Tomoharu; van der Vegt, Bert; Viale, Giuseppe; Hayes, Daniel F.; McShane, Lisa M.; Dowsett, Mitch; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of MedicineAims The nuclear proliferation marker Ki67 assayed by immunohistochemistry has multiple potential uses in breast cancer, but an unacceptable level of interlaboratory variability has hampered its clinical utility. The International Ki67 in Breast Cancer Working Group has undertaken a systematic programme to determine whether Ki67 measurement can be analytically validated and standardised among laboratories. This study addresses whether acceptable scoring reproducibility can be achieved on excision whole sections. Methods and results Adjacent sections from 30 primary ER+ breast cancers were centrally stained for Ki67 and sections were circulated among 23 pathologists in 12 countries. All pathologists scored Ki67 by two methods: (i) global: four fields of 100 tumour cells each were selected to reflect observed heterogeneity in nuclear staining; (ii) hot‐spot: the field with highest apparent Ki67 index was selected and up to 500 cells scored. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for the global method [confidence interval (CI) = 0.87; 95% CI = 0.799–0.93] marginally met the prespecified success criterion (lower 95% CI ≥ 0.8), while the ICC for the hot‐spot method (0.83; 95% CI = 0.74–0.90) did not. Visually, interobserver concordance in location of selected hot‐spots varies between cases. The median times for scoring were 9 and 6 min for global and hot‐spot methods, respectively. Conclusions The global scoring method demonstrates adequate reproducibility to warrant next steps towards evaluation for technical and clinical validity in appropriate cohorts of cases. The time taken for scoring by either method is practical using counting software we are making publicly available. Establishment of external quality assessment schemes is likely to improve the reproducibility between laboratories further.Item Analytical validation of a standardized scoring protocol for Ki67: phase 3 of an international multicenter collaboration(Nature, 2016) Leung, Samuel C. Y.; Nielsen, Torsten O.; Zabaglo, Lila; Arun, Indu; Badve, Sunil S.; Bane, Anita L.; Bartlett, John M. S.; Borgquist, Signe; Chang, Martin C.; Dodson, Andrew; Enos, Rebecca A.; Fineberg, Susan; Focke, Cornelia M.; Gao, Dongxia; Gown, Allen M.; Grabau, Dorthe; Gutierrez, Carolina; Hugh, Judith C.; Kos, Zuzana; Lænkholm, Anne-Vibeke; Lin, Ming-Gang; Mastropasqua, Mauro G.; Moriya, Takuya; Nofech-Mozes, Sharon; Osborne, C. Kent; Penault-Llorca, Frédérique M.; Piper, Tammy; Sakatani, Takashi; Salgado, Roberto; Starczynski, Jane; Viale, Giuseppe; Hayes, Daniel F.; McShane, Lisa M.; Dowsett, Mitch; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of MedicinePathological analysis of the nuclear proliferation biomarker Ki67 has multiple potential roles in breast and other cancers. However, clinical utility of the immunohistochemical (IHC) assay for Ki67 immunohistochemistry has been hampered by unacceptable between-laboratory analytical variability. The International Ki67 Working Group has conducted a series of studies aiming to decrease this variability and improve the evaluation of Ki67. This study tries to assess whether acceptable performance can be achieved on prestained core-cut biopsies using a standardized scoring method. Sections from 30 primary ER+ breast cancer core biopsies were centrally stained for Ki67 and circulated among 22 laboratories in 11 countries. Each laboratory scored Ki67 using three methods: (1) global (4 fields of 100 cells each); (2) weighted global (same as global but weighted by estimated percentages of total area); and (3) hot-spot (single field of 500 cells). The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), a measure of interlaboratory agreement, for the unweighted global method (0.87; 95% credible interval (CI): 0.81–0.93) met the prespecified success criterion for scoring reproducibility, whereas that for the weighted global (0.87; 95% CI: 0.7999–0.93) and hot-spot methods (0.84; 95% CI: 0.77–0.92) marginally failed to do so. The unweighted global assessment of Ki67 IHC analysis on core biopsies met the prespecified criterion of success for scoring reproducibility. A few cases still showed large scoring discrepancies. Establishment of external quality assessment schemes is likely to improve the agreement between laboratories further. Additional evaluations are needed to assess staining variability and clinical validity in appropriate cohorts of samples.Item ANTXR1, a stem cell enriched functional biomarker, connects collagen signaling to cancer stem-like cells and metastasis in breast cancer(American Association for Cancer Research, 2013-09-15) Chen, Daohong; Bhat-Nakshatri, Poornima; Goswami, Chirayu; Badve, Sunil; Nakshatri, HarikrishnaCancer stem-like cells are thought to contribute to tumor recurrence. The anthrax toxin receptor ANTXR1 has been identified as a functional biomarker of normal stem cells and breast cancer stem-like cells. Primary stem cell-enriched basal cells (CD49f+/EpCAM−/Lin−) expressed higher levels of ANTXR1 compared to mature luminal cells. CD49f+/EpCAM−, CD44+/EpCAM−, CD44+/CD24− or ALDEFLUOR-positive subpopulations of breast cancer cells were enriched for ANTXR1 expression. CD44+/CD24−/ANTXR1+ cells displayed enhanced self-renewal as measured by mammosphere assay compared to CD44+/CD24−/ANTXR1− cells. Activation of ANTXR1 by its natural ligand C5A, a fragment of collagen VI α3, increased stem cell self-renewal in mammosphere assays and Wnt signaling including the expression of the Wnt receptor LRP6, phosphorylation of GSK3α/β and elevated expression of Wnt target genes. RNAi-mediated silencing of ANTXR1 enhanced the expression of luminal-enriched genes but diminished Wnt signaling including reduced LRP6 and ZEB1 expression, self-renewal, invasion, tumorigenicity and metastasis. ANTXR1 silencing also reduced the expression of HSPA1A, which is overexpressed in metastatic breast cancer stem cells. Analysis of public databases revealed ANTXR1 amplification in medullary breast carcinoma and overexpression in estrogen receptor-negative breast cancers with the worst outcome. Further, ANTXR1 is among the 10% most overexpressed genes in breast cancer and is co-expressed with collagen VI. Thus, ANTXR1:C5A interactions bridge a network of collagen cleavage and remodeling in the tumor microenvironment, linking it to a stemness signaling network drives metastatic progression.Item Assessing tumor infiltrating lymphocytes in solid tumors: a practical review for pathologists and proposal for a standardized method from the International Immuno-Oncology Biomarkers Working Group: Part 1: Assessing the host immune response, TILs in invasive breast carcinoma and ductal carcinoma in situ, metastatic tumor deposits and areas for further research(Wolters Kluwer, 2017-09) Hendry, Shona; Salgado, Roberto; Gevaert, Thomas; Russell, Prudence; John, Tom; Thapa, Bibhusal; Christie, Michael; van de Vijver, Koen; Estrada, M. V.; Gonzalez-Ericsson, Paula; Sanders, Melinda; Soloman, Benjamin; Solinas, Cinzia; Van den Eynden, Gert; Allory, Yves; Preusser, Matthias; Hainfellner, Johannes; Pruneri, Giancarlo; Vingiani, Andrea; Demaria, Sandra; Symmans, Fraser; Nuciforo, Paolo; Comerma, Laura; Thompson, E. A.; Lakhani, Sunil; Kim, Seong-Rim; Schnitt, Stuart; Colpaert, Cecile; Sotiriou, Christos; Scherer, Stefan; Ignatiadis, Michail; Badve, Sunil S.; Pierce, Robert; Viale, Giuseppe; Sirtaine, Nicolas; Penault-Llorca, Frederique; Sugie, Tomohagu; Fineberg, Susan; Paik, Soonmyung; Srinivasan, Ashok; Richardson, Andrea; Wang, Yihong; Chmielik, Ewa; Brock, Jane; Johnson, Douglas; Balko, Justin; Wienert, Stephan; Bossuyt, Veerle; Michiels, Stefan; Ternes, Nils; Burchardi, Nicole; Luen, Stephen; Savas, Peter; Klauschen, Frederick; Watson, Peter; Nelson, Brad; Criscitiello, Carmen; O'Toole, Sandra; Larsimont, Denis; de Wind, Roland; Curigliano, Giuseppe; André, Fabrice; Lacroix-Triki, Magali; van de Vijver, Mark; Rojo, Federico; Floris, Giuseppe; Bedri, Shahinaz; Sparano, Joseph; Rimm, David; Nielsen, Torsten; Kos, Zuzana; Hewitt, Stephen; Singh, Baljit; Farshid, Gelareh; Loibl, Sibylle; Allison, Kimberly; Tung, Nadine; Adams, Sylvia; Willard-Gallo, Karen; Horlings, Hugo; Gandhi, Leena; Moreira, Andre; Hirsch, Fred; Dieci, Maria; Urbanowicz, Maria; Brcic, Iva; Korski, Konstanty; Gaire, Fabien; Koeppen, Hartmut; Lo, Amy; Giltnane, Jennifer; Rebelatto, Marlon; Steele, Keith; Zha, Jiping; Emancipator, Kenneth; Juco, Jonathan; Denkert, Carsten; Reis-Filho, Jorge; Loi, Sherene; Fox, Stephen; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of MedicineAssessment of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in histopathologic specimens can provide important prognostic information in diverse solid tumor types, and may also be of value in predicting response to treatments. However, implementation as a routine clinical biomarker has not yet been achieved. As successful use of immune checkpoint inhibitors and other forms of immunotherapy become a clinical reality, the need for widely applicable, accessible, and reliable immunooncology biomarkers is clear. In part 1 of this review we briefly discuss the host immune response to tumors and different approaches to TIL assessment. We propose a standardized methodology to assess TILs in solid tumors on hematoxylin and eosin sections, in both primary and metastatic settings, based on the International Immuno-Oncology Biomarker Working Group guidelines for TIL assessment in invasive breast carcinoma. A review of the literature regarding the value of TIL assessment in different solid tumor types follows in part 2. The method we propose is reproducible, affordable, easily applied, and has demonstrated prognostic and predictive significance in invasive breast carcinoma. This standardized methodology may be used as a reference against which other methods are compared, and should be evaluated for clinical validity and utility. Standardization of TIL assessment will help to improve consistency and reproducibility in this field, enrich both the quality and quantity of comparable evidence, and help to thoroughly evaluate the utility of TILs assessment in this era of immunotherapy.Item Assessing Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes in Solid Tumors: A Practical Review for Pathologists and Proposal for a Standardized Method from the International Immuno-Oncology Biomarkers Working Group Part 2 TILs in Melanoma, Gastrointestinal Tract Carcinomas, Non–Small Cell Lung Carcinoma and Mesothelioma, Endometrial and Ovarian Carcinomas, Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck, Genitourinary Carcinomas, and Primary Brain Tumors(Wolters Kluwer, 2017-11) Hendry, Shona; Salgado, Roberto; Gevaert, Thomas; Russell, Prudence A.; John, Tom; Thapa, Bibhusal; Christie, Michael; van de Vijver, Koen; Estrada, M. V.; Gonzalez-Ericsson, Paula I.; Sanders, Melinda; Solomon, Benjamin; Solinas, Cinzia; Van den Eynden, Gert G. G. M.; Allory, Yves; Preusser, Matthias; Hainfellner, Johannes; Pruneri, Giancarlo; Vingiani, Andrea; Demaria, Sandra; Symmans, Fraser; Nuciforo, Paolo; Comermo, Laura; Thompson, E. A.; Lakhani, Sunil; Kim, Seong-Rim; Schnitt, Stuart; Colpaert, Cecile; Sotiriou, Christos; Scherer, Stefan J.; Ignatiadis, Michail; Badve, Sunil S.; Pierce, Robert H.; Viale, Giuseppe; Sirtaine, Nicolas; Penault-Llorca, Frederique; Sugie, Tomohagu; Fineberg, Susan; Paik, Soonmyung; Srinivasan, Ashok; Richardson, Andrea; Wang, Yihong; Chmielik, Ewa; Brock, Jane; Johnson, Douglas B.; Balko, Justin; Wienert, Stephan; Bossuyt, Veerle; Michiels, Stefan; Ternes, Nils; Burchardi, Nicole; Luen, Stephen J.; Savas, Peter; Klauschen, Frederick; Watson, Peter H.; Nelson, Brad H.; Criscitiello, Carmen; O'Toole, Sandra; Larsimont, Denis; de Wind, Roland; Curigliano, Giuseppe; André, Fabrice; Lacroix-Triki, Magali; van de Vijver, Mark; Rojo, Federico; Floris, Giuseppe; Bedri, Shahinaz; Sparano, Joseph; Rimm, David; Nielsen, Torsten; Kos, Zuzana; Hewitt, Stephen; Singh, Baljit; Farshid, Gelareh; Loibl, Sibylle; Allison, Kimberly H.; Tung, Nadine; Adams, Sylvia; Willard-Gallo, Karen; Horlings, Hugo M.; Gandhi, Leena; Moreira, Andre; Hirsch, Fred; Dieci, Maria V.; Urbanowicz, Maria; Brcic, Iva; Korski, Konstanty; Gaire, Fabien; Koeppen, Hartmut; Lo, Amy; Giltnane, Jennifer; Rebelatto, Marlon C.; Steele, Keith E.; Zha, Jiping; Emancipator, Kenneth; Juco, Jonathan W.; Denkert, Carsten; Reis-Filho, Jorge; Loi, Sherene; Fox, Stephen B.; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of MedicineAssessment of the immune response to tumors is growing in importance as the prognostic implications of this response are increasingly recognized, and as immunotherapies are evaluated and implemented in different tumor types. However, many different approaches can be used to assess and describe the immune response, which limits efforts at implementation as a routine clinical biomarker. In part 1 of this review, we have proposed a standardized methodology to assess tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in solid tumors, based on the International Immuno-Oncology Biomarkers Working Group guidelines for invasive breast carcinoma. In part 2 of this review, we discuss the available evidence for the prognostic and predictive value of TILs in common solid tumors, including carcinomas of the lung, gastrointestinal tract, genitourinary system, gynecologic system, and head and neck, as well as primary brain tumors, mesothelioma and melanoma. The particularities and different emphases in TIL assessment in different tumor types are discussed. The standardized methodology we propose can be adapted to different tumor types and may be used as a standard against which other approaches can be compared. Standardization of TIL assessment will help clinicians, researchers and pathologists to conclusively evaluate the utility of this simple biomarker in the current era of immunotherapy.Item Association of Circulating Tumor DNA and Circulating Tumor Cells After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy With Disease Recurrence in Patients With Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Preplanned Secondary Analysis of the BRE12-158 Randomized Clinical Trial(American Medical Association, 2020-09) Radovich, Milan; Jiang, Guanglong; Hancock, Bradley A.; Chitambar, Christopher; Nanda, Rita; Falkson, Carla; Lynce, Filipa C.; Gallagher, Christopher; Isaacs, Claudine; Blaya, Marcelo; Paplomata, Elisavet; Walling, Radhika; Daily, Karen; Mahtani, Reshma; Thompson, Michael A.; Graham, Robert; Cooper, Maureen E.; Pavlick, Dean C.; Albacker, Lee A.; Gregg, Jeffrey; Solzak, Jeffrey P.; Chen, Yu-Hsiang; Bales, Casey L.; Cantor, Erica; Shen, Fei; Storniolo, Anna Maria V.; Badve, Sunil; Ballinger, Tarah J.; Chang, Chun-Li; Zhong, Yuan; Savran, Cagri; Miller, Kathy D.; Schneider, Bryan P.; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of MedicineImportance: A significant proportion of patients with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) are treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Sequencing of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) after surgery, along with enumeration of circulating tumor cells (CTCs), may be used to detect minimal residual disease and assess which patients may experience disease recurrence. Objective: To determine whether the presence of ctDNA and CTCs after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with early-stage TNBC is independently associated with recurrence and clinical outcomes. Design, setting, and participants: A preplanned secondary analysis was conducted from March 26, 2014, to December 18, 2018, using data from 196 female patients in BRE12-158, a phase 2 multicenter randomized clinical trial that randomized patients with early-stage TNBC who had residual disease after neoadjuvant chemotherapy to receive postneoadjuvant genomically directed therapy vs treatment of physician choice. Patients had blood samples collected for ctDNA and CTCs at time of treatment assignment; ctDNA analysis with survival was performed for 142 patients, and CTC analysis with survival was performed for 123 patients. Median clinical follow-up was 17.2 months (range, 0.3-58.3 months). Interventions: Circulating tumor DNA was sequenced using the FoundationACT or FoundationOneLiquid Assay, and CTCs were enumerated using an epithelial cell adhesion molecule-based, positive-selection microfluidic device. Main outcomes and measures: Primary outcomes were distant disease-free survival (DDFS), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS). Results: Among 196 female patients (mean [SD] age, 49.6 [11.1] years), detection of ctDNA was significantly associated with inferior DDFS (median DDFS, 32.5 months vs not reached; hazard ratio [HR], 2.99; 95% CI, 1.38-6.48; P = .006). At 24 months, DDFS probability was 56% for ctDNA-positive patients compared with 81% for ctDNA-negative patients. Detection of ctDNA was similarly associated with inferior DFS (HR, 2.67; 95% CI, 1.28-5.57; P = .009) and inferior OS (HR, 4.16; 95% CI,1.66-10.42; P = .002). The combination of ctDNA and CTCs provided additional information for increased sensitivity and discriminatory capacity. Patients who were ctDNA positive and CTC positive had significantly inferior DDFS compared with those who were ctDNA negative and CTC negative (median DDFS, 32.5 months vs not reached; HR, 5.29; 95% CI, 1.50-18.62; P = .009). At 24 months, DDFS probability was 52% for patients who were ctDNA positive and CTC positive compared with 89% for those who were ctDNA negative and CTC negative. Similar trends were observed for DFS (HR, 3.15; 95% CI, 1.07-9.27; P = .04) and OS (HR, 8.60; 95% CI, 1.78-41.47; P = .007). Conclusions and relevance: In this preplanned secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial, detection of ctDNA and CTCs in patients with early-stage TNBC after neoadjuvant chemotherapy was independently associated with disease recurrence, which represents an important stratification factor for future postneoadjuvant trials.