A study by researchers at the University of Southampton discovered that “crown-like structures” (CLSs) associated with the fat cells in HER2+ breast tumors could hinder the response of some patients to therapy. The results showed that CLSs were more commonly found at the adipose-tumor border (B-CLS) in HER2+ breast cancer, and also linked the presence of multiple B-CLS structures with faster time to metastasis in overweight or obese patients treated using the monoclonal antibody trastuzumab, when compared with treated patients who weren’t overweight. The team, led by Stephen Beers, PhD, Ramsey Cutress FRCS, PhD, and Charles Birts, PhD, suggests the study findings could help lead to improved personalized treatments for patients with HER2+ breast cancer.
Beers and colleagues reported on their study in Scientific Reports, in a paper titled, “Prognostic significance of crown-like structures to trastuzumab 1 response in patients with primary invasive HER2+ breast carcinoma.”
Adipose (fat) tissue is an important component of the healthy human breast, but high body mass index (BMI) is associated with increased risk of developing breast cancer, the authors wrote. Overweight cancer patients also have worse survival rates than those with a healthy body weight. “There is consequently significant interest in understanding the dynamic endocrine and immunological activity of the breast and how high BMI impacts these systems and ultimately influences pathology,” they noted.
In patients with a high BMI, increased body fat surrounding the breast can cause inflammatory macrophage immune cells to gather in the breast fat tissue. These macrophages can then form crown-like structures by surrounding the fat cells.