BRITISH JOURNAL OF CANCER

Perioperative safety of risk-reducing mastectomy
Knoedler S, Diatta F, Kasparbauer F, Knoedler L, Kim BS, Pomahac B and Kauke-Navarro M
Comparing cancer stage at diagnosis between migrants and non-migrants: a meta-analysis
Harvey-Sullivan A, Ali S, Dhesi P, Hart J, Painter H, Walter FM, Funston G and Zenner D
Migrants face barriers accessing healthcare, risking delays in cancer diagnosis. Diagnostic delays result in later stage diagnosis which is associated with poorer cancer survival. This review aims to compare the differences in cancer stage at diagnosis between migrants and non-migrants.
The abscopal effects of sonodynamic therapy in cancer
Collins VG, Hutton D, Hossain-Ibrahim K, Joseph J and Banerjee S
The abscopal effect is a phenomenon wherein localised therapy on the primary tumour leads to regression of distal metastatic growths. Interestingly, various pre-clinical studies utilising sonodynamic therapy (SDT) have reported significant abscopal effects, however, the mechanism remains largely enigmatic. SDT is an emerging non-invasive cancer treatment that uses focussed ultrasound (FUS) and a sonosensitiser to induce tumour cell death. To expand our understanding of abscopal effects of SDT, we have summarised the preclinical studies that have found SDT-induced abscopal responses across various cancer models, using diverse combination strategies with nanomaterials, microbubbles, chemotherapy, and immune checkpoint inhibitors. Additionally, we shed light on the molecular and immunological mechanisms underpinning SDT-induced primary and metastatic tumour cell death, as well as the role and efficacy of different sonosensitisers. Notably, the observed abscopal effects underscore the need for continued investigation into the SDT-induced 'vaccine-effect' as a potential strategy for enhancing systemic anti-tumour immunity and combating metastatic disease. The results of the first SDT human clinical trials are much awaited and are hoped to enable the further evaluation of the safety and efficacy of SDT, paving the way for future studies specifically designed to explore the potential of translating SDT-induced abscopal effects into clinical reality.
Phenotypical differences of neutrophils patrolling tumour-draining lymph nodes in head and neck cancer
Ekstedt S, Piersiala K, Kolev A, Farrajota Neves da Silva P, Margolin G, Kumlien Georén S and Cardell LO
The complexity and heterogeneity of neutrophils are recognized, especially their roles in modulating inflammation and cancer immune responses. The detailed functions of neutrophils in human tumour-draining lymph nodes (TDLNs), specifically in the context of head and neck cancer, remain inadequately characterized.
Integrated proteomics and scRNA-seq analyses of ovarian cancer reveal molecular subtype-associated cell landscapes and immunotherapy targets
Tan R, Wen M, Yang W, Zhan D, Zheng N, Liu M, Zhu F, Chen X, Wang M, Yang S, Xie B, He Q, Yuan K, Sun L, Wang Y, Qin J and Zhang Y
Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) represents the most lethal gynaecological malignancy, yet understanding the connections between its molecular subtypes and their therapeutic implications remains incomplete.
Associations of blood lipids and LDL cholesterol lowering drug-targets with colorectal cancer risk: a Mendelian randomisation study
Chan WC, Liu L, Bouras E, Zuber V, Wen W, Long J, Gill D, Murphy N, Gunter MJ, Assimes TL, Bujanda L, Gruber SB, Küry S, Lynch BM, Qu C, Thomas M, White E, Woods MO, Peters U, Li CI, Chan AT, Brenner H, Tsilidis KK and Zheng W
Whether blood lipids are causally associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) risk remains unclear.
Low-dose arsenic trioxide inhibits pancreatic stellate cell activation via LOXL3 expression to enhance immunotherapy in pancreatic cancer
Zhao Y, Li Y, Zou J, Guo T, Zhong Z, Li Y, Chen S, Li J, Huang K, Lian G and Huang Y
Pancreatic cancer (PC) is characterized by abnormally fibrotic mesenchyme, which notably influences on the effectiveness of immunotherapy. Low-dose arsenic trioxide (ATO, 1.0 μM) can inhibit the activation of pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) and affect fibrosis, which is a potential strategy for enhancing the sensitivity to immunotherapy.
Cardiotoxicity following thoracic radiotherapy for lung cancer
Walls GM, Bergom C, Mitchell JD, Rentschler SL, Hugo GD, Samson PP and Robinson CG
Radiotherapy is the standard of care treatment for unresectable NSCLC, combined with concurrent chemotherapy and adjuvant immunotherapy. Despite technological advances in radiotherapy planning and delivery, the risk of damage to surrounding thoracic tissues remains high. Cardiac problems, including arrhythmia, heart failure and ischaemic events, occur in 20% of patients with lung cancer who undergo radiotherapy. As survival rates improve incrementally for this cohort, minimising the cardiovascular morbidity of RT is increasingly important. Problematically, the reporting of cardiac endpoints has been poor in thoracic radiotherapy clinical trials, and retrospective studies have been limited by the lack of standardisation of nomenclature and endpoints. How baseline cardiovascular profile and cardiac substructure radiation dose distribution impact the risk of cardiotoxicity is incompletely understood. As Thoracic Oncology departments seek to expand the indications for radiotherapy, and as the patient cohort becomes older and more comorbid, there is a pressing need for cardiotoxicity to be comprehensively characterised with sophisticated oncology, physics and cardio-oncology evaluations. This review synthesises the evidence base for cardiotoxicity in conventional radiotherapy, focusing on lung cancer, including current data, unmet clinical needs, and future scientific directions.
Breast cancer metastasis progression is associated with elevated activity of kynurenine monooxygenase and kynureninase
Girithar HN, Krishnamurthy S, Carroll L, Guller A, Bilgin AA, Gluch L, Guillemin GJ, Ahn SB and Heng B
Metastasis remains the major cause of death in breast cancer (BrCa) and lacks specific treatment strategies. The kynurenine pathway (KP) has been suggested as a key mechanism facilitating progression of BrCa. While KP activity has been explored in primary BrCa, its role in metastasis remains unclear. To better understand this, we examined changes in the KP of BrCa with no metastasis compared to BCa that produced local or distant metastases. Given that the cancer cell secretome plays a role in metastasis, we also investigated the relationship between changes in KP activity and serum proteins of patients with local or distant metastases.
Correction: Modelled mortality benefits of multi-cancer early detection screening in England
Sasieni P, Smittenaar R, Hubbell E, Broggio J, Neal RD and Swanton C
Editorial Expression of Concern: Temozolomide induces senescence but not apoptosis in human melanoma cells
Mhaidat NM, Zhang XD, Allen J, Avery-Kiejda KA, Scott RJ and Hersey P
Editorial Expression of Concern: Identification of DNA hypermethylation of SOX9 in association with bladder cancer progression using CpG microarrays
Aleman A, Adrien L, Lopez-Serra L, Cordon-Cardo C, Esteller M, Belbin TJ and Sanchez-Carbayo M
Cancer care for migrant people
Dee EC
Adaptive Universal Principles for Real-world Observational Studies (AUPROS): an approach to designing real-world observational studies for clinical, epidemiologic, and precision oncology research
Barghout SH, Meti N, Chotai S, Kim CJH, Patel D, Brown MC, Hueniken K, Zhan LJ, Raptis S, Al-Agha F, Deutschman C, Grant B, Pienkowski M, Moriarty P, de Almeida J, Goldstein DP, Bratman SV, Shepherd FA, Tsao MS, Freedman AN, Xu W and Liu G
The field of precision oncology has witnessed several advances that stimulated the development of new clinical trial designs and the emergence of real-world data (RWD) as an important resource for evidence generation in healthcare decision-making. Here, we highlight our experience with an innovative approach to a set of Adaptive, Universal Principles for Real-world Observational Studies (AUPROS). To demonstrate the utility of these principles, we used a mixed-methods approach to assess three studies that follow AUPROS at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre: (1) Molecular Epidemiology of ThorAcic Lesions (METAL), (2) Translational Head And NecK Study (THANKS), and (3) CAnadian CAncers With Rare Molecular Alterations (CARMA; NCT04151342). We performed resource assessments, stakeholder-directed surveys and discussions, analysis of funding, research output, collaborations, and a Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) analysis. Based on these analyses, AUPROS is an approach that is applicable to a wide range of observational study designs. The universality of AUPROS allows for multi-purpose analyses of various RWD, and the adaptive nature creates opportunities for multi-source funding and collaborations. Following AUPROS can offer cost and logistical benefits and may lead to increased research productivity. Several challenges were identified pertinent to ethics approvals, sustainability, complex coordination, and data quality that require local adaptation of these principles.
Correction: Height and breast cancer risk in premenopausal Korean women aged under 40 years of age
Tran TXM, Chang Y, Choi HR, Kwon R, Lim GY, Cho Y, Ryu S and Park B
VEGF-C propagates 'onward' colorectal cancer metastasis from liver to lung
Poghosyan S, Frenkel N, van den Bent L, Raats D, Spaapen T, Laoukili J, Borel Rinkes I, Kranenburg O and Hagendoorn J
The formation of lung metastasis as part of the progression of colon cancer is a poorly understood process. Theoretically, liver metastases could seed lung metastases.
Understanding genetic architecture of breast cancer: how can proteome-wide association studies contribute?
Sun Y and Huo D
Germline BRCA1/2 status and chemotherapy response score in high-grade serous ovarian cancer
Morgan RD, Wang X, Barnes BM, Spurgeon L, Carrot A, Netto D, Hasan J, Mitchell C, Salih Z, Desai S, Shaw J, Winter-Roach B, Schlecht H, Burghel GJ, Clamp AR, Edmondson RJ, You B, Evans DGR, Jayson GC and Taylor SS
High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) can be treated with platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) and delayed primary surgery (DPS). Histopathological response to NACT can be assessed using Böhm's chemotherapy response score (CRS). We investigated whether germline BRCA1/2 (gBRCA1/2) genotype associated with omental CRS phenotype.
UK guidelines for the management of bone sarcomas
Gerrand C, Amary F, Anwar HA, Brennan B, Dileo P, Kalkat MS, McCabe MG, McCullough AL, Parry MC, Patel A, Seddon BM, Sherriff JM, Tirabosco R and Strauss SJ
This document is an update of the British Sarcoma Group guidelines (2016) and provides a reference standard for the clinical care of UK patients with primary malignant bone tumours (PMBT) and giant cell tumours (GCTB) of bone. The guidelines recommend treatments that are effective and should be available in the UK, and support decisions about management and service delivery. The document represents a consensus amongst British Sarcoma Group members in 2024. Key recommendations are that bone pain, or a palpable mass should always lead to further investigation and that patients with clinical or radiological findings suggestive of a primary bone tumour at any anatomic site should be referred to a specialist centre and managed by an accredited bone sarcoma multidisciplinary team. Treatment recommendations are provided for the major tumour types and for localised, metastatic and recurrent disease. Follow-up schedules are suggested.
Cancer and treatment specific incidence rates of immune-related adverse events induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors: a systematic review
Jayathilaka B, Mian F, Franchini F, Au-Yeung G and IJzerman M
Immune-related adverse events (irAE) induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) are a treatment-limiting barrier. There are few large-scale studies that estimate irAE prevalence. This paper presents a systematic review that reports the prevalence of irAE by cancer type and ICI.
SKP2 inhibition activates tumor cell-intrinsic immunity by inducing DNA replication stress and genomic instability
Peng Y, Qi X, Ding L, Huang J, Liu Y, Zheng R, Fu Y, Yin L, Deng T, Ye Y, Chen S and Li X
S-phase kinase-associated protein 2 (SKP2) is a typical oncogene aberrantly overexpressing in a variety of cancer types, but it remains elusive whether SKP2 regulates the antitumor immunity of triple-negative breast cancer.