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2. research reports - Research Focus
3. current projects - Current Projects
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7. studies / Ki67 in breast cancer
1. news
Martin Radner from our working group has carried out a comprehensive study on a new variant of breast cancer. This is the lobular breast carcinoma with tubular elements (ILC-TE) described for the first time in our working group. In a population of >4500 breast cancer cases, Martin Radner determined the frequency of this variant and investigated associated clinicopathological features. According to his investigations, this tumor phenotype within lobular carcinomas is associated with small tumor size, absence of nodal metastases, low proliferative activity and with E-cadherin to P-cadherin switching (EPS).
His work appeared in Laboratory Investigation
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0023683725000352
(March 2025)
In cooperation with the University of Cologne, our research group has studied genetic alterations in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).
The study has been published in JAMA Network Open.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2830761
(March 2025)
In cooperation with the University of Erlangen, our research group has contributed to the development of a model for predicting complete response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (pCR) in HER2-negative breast cancer.
This study has been published in Breast Cancer Research.
breast-cancer-research.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13058-025-01960-8
(Feb 2025)
In collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), we have determined the characteristics of breast carcinomas with so-called HER2-low status.
This study has been published in Breast Cancer Research.
breast-cancer-research.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13058-025-01969-z
(Feb 2025)
In collaboration with Philipp Altrock and Arne Traulsen from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology in Plön, our research group has developed a unique model of lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS) of the mammary gland. This model suggests that the preferential intra-acinar localization of LCIS cells is an indirect consequence of the typical loss of cell adhesion in this lesion. The study was published in Mathematical Biosciences.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025556424002293
(Dec. 2024)
Henriette Warm from our research group has evaluated immunohistochemical markers to support the differential diagnosis between collagenous spherulosis and adenoid cystic carcinoma of the breast.
The study has been published in Human Pathology .
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0046817724000650?via%3Dihub
(Jun 2024)
Malte Gronewold from our research group has investigated distant metastasis of lobular breast carcinoma to the colon. The results of his study suggest that the microenvironment of the intestinal mucosa stimulates the tumor cells of lobular breast carcinomas to aberrant expression of P-cadherin and thus induces a morphological shape change. This leads to the formation of unusual tubular elements in the infiltrates of lobular breast carcinomas in the colon. The study has been published in Journal of Pathology, Clincal Research .
pathsocjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/2056-4538.12361
(Jan 2024)
Nora Schaumann from our research group has published an unusual collision tumor of the breast (malignant phyllodes tumor mixed with an invasive lobular carcinoma). The case study and an associated literature review have been published in Pathology Research and Practice .
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38277744/
(Jan 2024)
Together with Gabor Cserni (University of Szeged, Hungary), our research group has investigated the positive effects of immunohistochemistry for E-cadherin in the histologic subtyping of lobular breast carcinoma from a routine diagnostic point of view. The results have been published in Histopathology .
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37609779
(Sept 2023)
Together with Jason Mouabbi (MD Anderson Center, Houston, U.S.A.), our group has investigated the prognosis of lobular breast cancer with and without LCIS . It is noteworthy that lobular carcinomas with an LCIS component have a statistically significantly more favorable prognosis. The results of these investigations have been published in the European Journal of Cancer.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37573674/
(Sept 2023)
In collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), our research group has published on the clinical trial WSG-TP-II (HR-positive/HER2-positive breast cancer). This publication has been published in JAMA Oncology.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37166817/
(Jul 2023)
Together with Georgios Sflomos (ISREC, Lausanne, Switzerland), our research group has shown that the human lobular mammary carcinoma cell line IPH-926 initially forms a pleomorphic lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS) when injected intraductally in experimental animals and only then successively gives rise to invasive lobular carcinomas and distant metastases. The pleomorphic LCIS formed by IPH-926 cells in experimental animals recapitulates the features of true human pleomorphic LCIS in detail and represents a valuable new experimental animal model. The publication has appeared in Cancers.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37444409/
(June 2023)
In collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), our group has presented 5-year follow-up data from the WSG-ADAPT-TP trial for HR-positive/HER2-positive breast cancer. The results have been published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology .
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36809046/
(Feb 2023)
Sophie Müller from our research group has shown in a German Cancer Aid-funded study on hormone receptor-positive breast cancer that aberrant expression of p53 is not only closely correlated with TP53 mutation, but is also associated with primary endocrine resistance. Their work has been published in the journal Modern Pathology.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36788081/
(Feb. 2023)
Our research group has participated in an internationally coordinated project to develop an AI-based method for the histologic grading of breast cancer. The results of this development study have been published in the journal NPJ Breast Cancer .
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36347887/
(Nov. 2022)
In collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), our research group has investigated gene expression signatures in breast carcinomas under neoadjuvant anti-HER2 therapy with trastuzumab/pertuzumab. The study has been published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36441798/
(Nov. 2022)
Together with researchers from the European Lobular Breast Cancer Consortium (ELBCC), our research group is publishing a worldwide survey of pathologists on the use of diagnostic criteria in the subtyping of lobular breast cancer. The results of this study have been published in Modern Pathology :
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35922548/
(Aug. 2022)
In collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), our research group publishes the world's first clinical trial in which a gene expression-based test (Oncotype DX Recurrence Score) was combined with the Ki67 response after pre-surgical endocrine therapy to guide systemic adjuvant therapy in hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer. The publication of the ADAPT HR+/HER2 study has been published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology :
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35404683/
(Aug. 2022)
In her current publication, Isabel Grotes shows that lobular breast carcinomas with HER2/ERBB2 mutation actively proliferate even under pre-surgical endocrine therapy. These results indicate that HER2-mutated breast carcinomas are hormonally resistant. This work has recently been published in Modern Pathology :
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35842479/
(Jul 2022)
In collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), our research group is publishing a phase 2 study on neoadjuvant chemotherapy with pertuzumab/trastuzumab without additional paclitaxel in HER2-positive breast cancer. This clinical trial has been published in Lancet Oncology:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35405088/
(May 2022)
Our study on the agreement of findings in the histologic diagnosis of lobular breast cancer, a collaboration with the European Lobular Breast Cancer Consortium (ELBCC) and the West German Study Group (WSG), has been published in J Pathol Clin Res:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34889530/
(Jan 2022)
Isabel Grotes's work on the association between TP53 mutation and resistance to pre-operative endocrine hormone therapy in patients with HR-positive early breast cancer has been published in Cancer Medicine :
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34779146/
(Nov 2021)
In collaboration with the European Lobular Breast Cancer Consortium (ELBCC) and experts from six different nations, the Breast Cancer Clinical Trials Working Group has published a comprehensive review of various concepts of lobular breast cancer in diagnostics and research.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34359596/
(Jul 2021)
Martin Radner's work on the epigenetic inactivation of the transcription factor GATA3
in microglandular adenoses of the breast has been published in the
Journal of Pathology, Clinical Research :
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33382535/
(Jan 2021)
The WSG publishes first data from the WSG-ADAPT study (RunIn Phase) for HR+/HER2- breast cancer:
A successful collaboration with the MHH Clinical Trials Group Breast Cancer
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33281950/
(Nov 2020)
Our joint study with the WSG on the differential prognostic impact of the Oncotype DX Recurrence Score in HR-positive lobular breast cancer has been published in the journal Cancer .
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32780421/
(August 2020)
The West German Study Group (WSG) publishes our joint work on the prognostic impact of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in HR-positive and HR-negative breast cancer (WSG PlanB study) in Breast Cancer Research.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32408905/
(May 2020)
Our work on switching from E-cadherin to P-cadherin in lobular breast carcinomas with tubular elements has been published in Modern Pathology .
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32572153/
(May 2020)
Our work on the concordance of histologic grading in lobular breast carcinoma has been published in Pathology Research and Practice.
(Nov 2019)
The WSG publishes our joint study on PAM50 subtypes in triple-negative breast cancer in the International Journal of Cancer. Among other things, this confirms our finding from 2013 that triple-negative lobular carcinomas are luminal differentiated:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31162838
(Jun 2019)
The WSG publishes data from the PlanB study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. In this collaboration with the WG Clinical Trials in Breast Cancer, different regimens of adjuvant chemotherapy were investigated:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30785826
(Apr 2019)
Our work on HER2 mutations in lobular carcinoma has been published in Genes Chromosomes and Cancer :
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30520184
(Jan 2019)
The Clinical Trials Group Breast Cancer is involved in the expert network European Lobular Breast Cancer Consortium:
(Nov 2018)
Our work on HER2 mutations in bone metastases from breast cancer has been published in Virchows Archiv:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30094493
(Aug 2018)
The WSG publishes the ADAPT-TN study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. In this collaboration with the WG Clinical Trials in Breast Cancer, different regimens for neoadjuvant chemotherapy were investigated:
(June 2018)
Stephan Bartel's work on CDKN2A in myoepithelial breast carcinoma has been published in the Journal of Pathology:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29708279
(May 2018)
The German Cancer Aid supports our initiative to investigate "Determinants of endocrine resistance a breast cancer". In this cooperation with the West German Study Group (WSG), the LMU Munich and the DKFZ Heidelberg, we are investigating how breast cancer acquires therapy resistance.
(Jan 2018)
Our work on TFAP2B in lobular breast cancer has just been published in Laboratory Investigation:
(Jan 2018)
1. news
Martin Radner from our group has reported a comprehensive analysis of a new breast cancer variant called invasive lobular carcinoma with tubular elements (ILC-TE). More than 4,500 breast cancer cases were re-evaluated to determine the frequency of this previously unrecognized tumor phenotype. Martin Radner showed that ILC-TE is associated with smaller tumor size, lack of nodal metastasis, slow tumor growth and E-cadherin to P-cadherin switching (EPS).
His study has been published in Laboratory Investigation.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0023683725000352
(March 2025)
Together with the University of Cologne, our group has studied genetic alterations in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).
This study has been published in JAMA Network Open.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2830761
(March 2025)
In cooperation with the University of Erlangen, we have contributed to the development of a pathological complete response (pCR)-prediction model for HER2-negative breast cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
Our study has been published in Breast Cancer Research.
breast-cancer-research.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13058-025-01960-8
(Feb 2025)
Together with the West German Study Group (WSG) our group has studied the characteristics and the prognosis of breast carcinomas with HER2-low status.
Our study has been published in Breast Cancer Research.
https://breast-cancer-research.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13058-025-01969-z
(Feb 2025)
Together with Philipp Altrock and Arne Traulsen from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, we have developed a unique model for lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS) of the mammary gland. The model suggests that the preferential intra-azinar localization of LCIS cells is caused by the loss of cell adhesion that typically occurs in these lesions.
This study has been published in Mathematical Biosciences.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025556424002293
(Dec 2024)
Henriette Warm from our group evaluated immunohistochemical markers for the differential diagnosis between collagenous spherulosis and adenoid-cystic carcinoma of the mammary gland.
Her study has been published in Human Pathology.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0046817724000650?via%3Dihub
(Jun 2024)
Malte Gronewold from our group has investigated invasive lobular breast carcinoma (ILC) metastasis to the colon. His findings imply that the colon mucosa microenvironment can stimulate ILC cells to switch from an E-cadherin-deficient to a P-cadherin-proficient status (EPS). This is associated with the formation of cohesive tubular elements in ILC metastases in the colon. His study has been published in the Journal of Pathology Clinical Research.
pathsocjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/2056-4538.12361
(Jan 2024)
Nora Schaumann from our group has published an umcommon collision tumor of the breast, composed of a malignant phylloides tumor and an invasive lobular carcinoma. Her detailed morpho-molecular characterization and a review of the literature have been published in Pathology Research and Practice.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38277744/
(Jan 2024)
Together with Gabor Cserni (University of Szeged, Hungary) our group has studied the advantages of upfront immunohistochemistry for E-cadherin to support the typing of lobular breast carcinoma in routine diagnostics. The results of this study have been published in Histopathology.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37609779
(Sept 2023)
Together with Jason Mouabbi (MD Anderson Center, Houston, U.S.A.) we have investigated the prognosis of lobularbreast carcinoma with and without LCIS. The results of this study indicate the presence of an LCIS component is a good prognostic marker. The results of this study have been published in the European Journal of Cancer.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37573674/
(Sept 2023)
Together with the West German Study Group (WSG), our group has reported on the WSG-TP-II trial (HR-positive/HER2-positive breast cancer). This study has been published in JAMA Oncology.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37166817/
(Jul 2023)
Together with Georgios Sflomos (ISREC, Lausanne, Switzerland) we have reported on the use of IPH-926 lobular carcinoma cells for intraductal injection models in mice. Strikingly IPH-926 forms pleomorphic LCIS in the mouse mammary gland. LCIS foci subsequently progress to invasive and metastatic lobular carcinoma. This work has been published in Cancers.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37444409/
(June 2023)
Together with the West German Study Group (WSG), our group has reported 5-year follow-up data from the WSG-ADAPT-TP trial (HR-positive/HER2-positive breast cancer). The results of this study have been published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36809046/
(Feb 2023)
Sophie Müller, an MD doctoral candidate from our group, has investigated aberrant expression of p53 in luminal breast cancer. Her studies was supported by the German Cancer Aid. The results show that aberrant p53 expression correlates with TP53 mutation and primary endocrine resistance. Her work has recently been published in Modern Pathology.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36788081/
(Feb. 2023)
Our group has contributed to the development of an AI-based method to improve the histological grading of breast cancer. The results of this project and the method have been published in NPJ Breast Cancer.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36347887/
(Nov. 2022)
Together with the West German Study Group (WSG) we have characterized gene expression pattern in breast cancers under anti-HER2 therapy with trastuzumab/pertuzumab. The results of this project have been published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36441798/
(Nov. 2022)
Together with scientists and pathologists from the European Lobular Breast Cancer Consortium, we have published a worldwide survey concerning the interpretation of diagnostic criteria for the invasive lobular breast cancer. The results of this survey have been reported in Modern Pathology:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35922548/
(Aug. 2022)
Together with the West German Study Group (WSG) we have conducted the first clinical trial worldwide, that has combined a gene expression-based assay (Oncotype DX Recurrence Score) with Ki67-response evaluation after pre-operative endocrine therapy to guide patient treatment in hormone receptor-positive HER2-negative early breast cancer. This work has been published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35404683/
(Aug. 2022)
In her recent publication, Isabel Grote shows that tumor cell proliferation is sustained during preoperative endocrine therapy in early lobular breast cancers harboring HER2/ERBB2 mutations. These results indicate that a substantial proportion of lobular carcinomas is primarily resistant to anti-hormone therapy. This study has been published in Modern Pathology:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35842479/
(Jul 2022)
Our group has supported the West German Study Group's (WSG) phase 2 clinical trial concerning neoadjuvant chemotherapy with Pertuzumab/Trastuzumab without additional paclitaxel for HER2-positive breast cancer. The results of this clinical trial have been reported in Lancet Oncology:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35405088/
(May 2022)
Our comprehensive study on the inter-observer agreement for the histological diagnosis of invasive lobular breast carcinoma, a collaboration with the ELBCC and the WSG, has been published in J Pathol Clin Res..
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34889530/
(Jan 2022)
Isabel Grotes's study on the role of TP53 mutations in resistance to pre-operative endocrine therapy in patients with HR-positive early breast cancer has been published in Cancer Medicine:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34779146/
(Nov 2021)
Together with the European lobular breast cancer consortium (ELBCC) and experts from six countries, we have published a comprehensive review on different concepts of lobular breast cancer in research and diagnostics.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34359596/
(Jul 2021)
Martin Radner's paper on the epigenetic silencing of GATA3 microglandular adenosis of the mammary gland has been published in the Journal of Pathology:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33382535/
(Jan 2021)
The West German Study group (WSG) reports first data from the WSG-ADAPT trial (RunIn phase) for HR+/HER2- breast cancer in
Therapeutic advances in medical oncology:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33281950/
(Nov 2020)
Our study on the differential prognostic impact of the Oncotype DX recurrence score in HR-positive lobular breast cancer, which has been conducted in collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), has been published in Cancer.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32780421/
(August 2020)
The West German Study Group publishes our collaboration work on the prognostic impact of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in HR-positive and HR-negative breast cancer (WSG PlanB trial) in Breast Cancer Research.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32408905/
(May 2020)
Our paper on E-cadherin to P-cadherin switching in lobular breast cancer with tubular elements has just been published in Modern Pathology.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32572153/
(May 2020)
Our paper on the histological grading in lobular breast cancer has just been published in Pathology Research and Practice.
(Nov 2019)
The WSG publishes our collaboration on PAM50-subtypes in triple-negative breast cancer in the International Journal of Cancer. This study shows that triple-negative lobular carcinomas are characterized by luminal differentiation.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31162838
(Jun 2019)
The WSG publishes data from the PlanB trial in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. This collaboration with the AG clinical studies in breast cancer investigated different regimes for adjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30785826
(Apr 2019)
Our paper on HER2 mutation in lobular breast cancer has been published in Genes Chromosomes and Cancer.
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30520184
(Jan 2019)
The AG clinical studies in breast cancer joins the research network European Lobular Breast Cancer Consortium.
(Nov 2018)
Our paper on HER2 mutations in bone metastasis from breast cancer has just been published in Virchows Archiv:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30094493
(Aug 2018)
The WSG publishes data from the ADAPT-TN trial in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. This collaboration with the AG clinical studies in breast cancer investigated different regimes for neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
(June 2018)
Stephan Bartel's paper on CDKN2A in myoepithelial breast cancer has been published in the Journal of Pathology:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29708279
(May 2018)
The German Cancer Aid supports our initiative to study "Determinants of endocrine resistance in breast cancer". In this collaboration with the West German Study Group (WSG), the LMU Munich and the DKFZ Heidelberg, we will unravel genetic alterations associated with endocrine resistance in breast cancer.
(Jan 2018)
Our paper on the transcription factor TFAP2B in lobular breast cancer has just been published in Laboratory Investigation:
(Jan 2018)