Decreased enrollment in breast cancer trials by histologic subtype: does invasive lobular carcinoma resist RECIST?

Mary Kathryn Abel; Michelle E Melisko; Hope S Rugo; A Jo Chien; Italia Diaz; Julia K Levine; Ann Griffin; Joseph McGuire; Laura J Esserman; Hala T Borno; Rita A Mukhtar

doi:10.1038/s41523-021-00348-z

Decreased enrollment in breast cancer trials by histologic subtype: does invasive lobular carcinoma resist RECIST?

NPJ Breast Cancer. 2021 Oct 25;7(1):139. doi: 10.1038/s41523-021-00348-z.

Authors

Mary Kathryn Abel^{1

2}, Michelle E Melisko³, Hope S Rugo³, A Jo Chien³, Italia Diaz⁴, Julia K Levine⁵, Ann Griffin⁶, Joseph McGuire⁶, Laura J Esserman², Hala T Borno³, Rita A Mukhtar⁷

Affiliations

¹ University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA.
² University of California, San Francisco, Department of Surgery, San Francisco, CA, USA.
³ University of California at San Francisco, Division of Hematology/Oncology, San Francisco, CA, USA.
⁴ University of California, Davis School of Medicine, Sacramento, CA, USA.
⁵ Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance, Venice, CA, USA.
⁶ Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Francisco, CA, USA.
⁷ University of California, San Francisco, Department of Surgery, San Francisco, CA, USA. rita.mukhtar@ucsf.edu.

Abstract

Enrollment in metastatic breast cancer trials usually requires measurable lesions, but patients with invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) tend to form diffuse disease. We found that the proportion of patients with metastatic ILC enrolled in clinical trials at our institution was significantly lower than that of patients with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC). Possible links between requiring measurable disease and decreased enrollment of ILC patients require further study to ensure equitable trial access.

Grants and funding

K08 CA256047/CA/NCI NIH HHS/United States