Treatment Outcomes and Clinicopathologic Characteristics of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: A Report from Cancer Institute of Iran

Background: Triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC) have a more aggressive course and are associated with poorer prognosis in comparison with other subtypes of breast cancer. One of the most common subtypes of TNBC is basal-like. The aim of this study was to investigate clinicopathological characteristics and clinical course of TNBC in Iranian women and compare them with other studies. Subjects and Methods: Between March 2009 and February 2011, patients with breast cancer in Cancer Institute of Iran were selected and then followed-up for 2 years. Paraffin-embedded tumor block of all TNBC patients were evaluated for CK5/6 and EGFR using IHC method. Results: Among 267 breast cancer patients, 60 cases with TNBC were identified (22.5%), 31 patients (51.7%) had basal-like and 29 patients (48.3%) had non-basal-like tumors. The median age of participants with TNBC was 49.6 years. Among our patients, 70% had positive lymph nodes.93.4% of all patients at the time of diagnosis were stage II or III and tumor size was at least 3 centimeters. No grade 1 TNBC was found in this study. During the follow-up period, there were 26 recurrences and 7 deaths. Conclusion: The percentage of basal-like subtype among Iranian women with TNBC was lower compared to other studies, while bone metastases, clinical stage, lymph node involvement and tumor size were higher. Clinicopathological findings in basal and non-basal-like subgroups were not different, but the probability of lymph node involvement was more common in patients who were EGFR positive.