title: Dose-dense intensified sequential versus conventionally-dosed anthracycline and taxane-containing neoadjuvant therapy in patients with inflammatory breast cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This post-hoc analysis aimed to compare an intense dose-dense sequential chemotherapy (DD-CT) and a conventionally-dosed chemotherapy (CD-CT) in the neoadjuvant AGO-1 study, focusing on the subgroup with inflammatory breast cancer (IBC).
  
  
  METHODS
  Out of 668 randomised patients, 101 patients presented with IBC. Patients received epirubicin followed by paclitaxel every 2 weeks (DD-CT) or simultaneously every 3 weeks (CD-CT).
  
  
  RESULTS
  No differences in pathological complete response rates were observed [odds ratio (OR)=1.27, p=0.33]. Most patients were scheduled for mastectomy before starting therapy; however, in 21.7% breast-conserving surgery was performed. Disease-free survival rates [Hazard Ratio (HR)=0.65; p=0.597] and overall survival rates (HR=1.40; p=0.327) were similar for both treatment arms. Patients with breast-conserving surgery had a significantly better outcome than patients treated with mastectomy (disease-free survival: HR=0.41; p=0.034 and overall survival: HR=0.09; p=0.003).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with IBC benefited not from DD-CT but from breast-conserving surgery after neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
authors: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Ludwig Maximilians University, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377 Munich, Germany. nina.ditsch@med.uni-muenchen.de
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Ditsch
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Vodermaier
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Hinke
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Burghardt
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Lenhard
authors: B
authors: B
authors: Löhrs
authors: B
authors: B
authors: Toth
authors: F
authors: F
authors: Von Koch
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Kahlert
authors: I
authors: I
authors: Bauerfeind
authors: G E
authors: GE
authors: Konecny
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Loibl
authors: G
authors: G
authors: VON Minckwitz
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Untch
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D015251:Epirubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D058922:Inflammatory Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017239:Paclitaxel / Q000008:administration & dosage; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D015251:Epirubicin; D017239:Paclitaxel