Correlations between hormonal receptor and HER2 status or nuclear grades and response rate in breast cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy of docetaxel alone

BACKGROUND: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy has been considered the standard care in locally advanced breast cancer. However, about 10-35% of the patients don't benefit from this treatment This study was designed to evaluate predictive values of biological markers in response of breast cancers treated with docetaxel alone as neoadjuvant chemotherapy. METHODS: 36 patients received the planned four courses of preoperative docetaxel (60-75 mg/m²) every 3 weeks. We evaluated the relationship between the response rate to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and hormonal receptor, HER2 status or nuclear grades. RESULTS: Clinical response rate was 57.2%. Pathological complete response rate was 5.6%. Clinical response rate by each factors were as follows; 9 (50%) in ER-positive tumors, 10 (66.7%) in ER-negative (p=0.27), 7 (50%) in PgR-positive, 12 (63.3%) in PgR-negative (p=0.34), 5 (55.6%) in HER2-positive, 14 (58.3%) in HER2-negative (p=0.71), 4 (50%) in tumors of low nuclear grade and 13 (65%) in ones of high nuclear grade (p=0.38). CONCLUSION: The possibility that tumors with negative hormonal receptors or of high nuclear grade tend to respond to neoadjuvant chemotherapy with docetaxel alone more likely was suggested. It is thought breast cancers respond to neoadjuvant chemotherapy of docetaxel alone regardless of HER2 status.