Breast cancer is a highly heterogeneous disease. Despite advances in early detection and treatment, breast cancer (BC) is the leading cause of cancer death in women worldwide. Heterogeneity negatively affects a patient’s prognosis, treatment sensitivity, and clinical outcome. In particular, the development of drug resistance mechanisms and the failure of anticancer drugs (initially or subsequently) could lie in the heterogeneity among BC patients and tumors. The major international guidelines have adopted an immunophenotypic sub-classification of BC to maximize patient eligibility for personalized therapy but do not take into account the extreme diversity existing between breast tumors (intratumor heterogeneity).
Better understanding of the various aspects of breast cancer heterogeneity, both intertumoral and intratumoral, represents a crucial point to provide guidance to future cancer therapy and to achieve improved outcomes. Recent studies highlighted the clinical relevance of BC heterogeneity and its implication for effective personalized therapeutic strategies. In particular, several studies have investigated heterogeneity among tumors before and after neoadjuvant therapy or multiple metastatic sites during the treatment course, by performing serial biopsies. Generally, the results showed a correlation between tumors’ changes at different levels and worse outcomes.
The aim of the Research Topic is to explore different aspects of breast cancer heterogeneity with a focus on the impact on diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy.
We welcome original research and review articles on:
- Intertumor heterogeneity (histology, biomarkers, genetic heterogeneity)
- Spatial and temporal heterogeneity
- HER2 heterogeneity
Please note: manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics, computational analysis, or predictions of public databases which are not accompanied by validation (independent cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) will not be accepted in any of the sections of Frontiers in Oncology.
Breast cancer is a highly heterogeneous disease. Despite advances in early detection and treatment, breast cancer (BC) is the leading cause of cancer death in women worldwide. Heterogeneity negatively affects a patient’s prognosis, treatment sensitivity, and clinical outcome. In particular, the development of drug resistance mechanisms and the failure of anticancer drugs (initially or subsequently) could lie in the heterogeneity among BC patients and tumors. The major international guidelines have adopted an immunophenotypic sub-classification of BC to maximize patient eligibility for personalized therapy but do not take into account the extreme diversity existing between breast tumors (intratumor heterogeneity).
Better understanding of the various aspects of breast cancer heterogeneity, both intertumoral and intratumoral, represents a crucial point to provide guidance to future cancer therapy and to achieve improved outcomes. Recent studies highlighted the clinical relevance of BC heterogeneity and its implication for effective personalized therapeutic strategies. In particular, several studies have investigated heterogeneity among tumors before and after neoadjuvant therapy or multiple metastatic sites during the treatment course, by performing serial biopsies. Generally, the results showed a correlation between tumors’ changes at different levels and worse outcomes.
The aim of the Research Topic is to explore different aspects of breast cancer heterogeneity with a focus on the impact on diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy.
We welcome original research and review articles on:
- Intertumor heterogeneity (histology, biomarkers, genetic heterogeneity)
- Spatial and temporal heterogeneity
- HER2 heterogeneity
Please note: manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics, computational analysis, or predictions of public databases which are not accompanied by validation (independent cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) will not be accepted in any of the sections of Frontiers in Oncology.