Breast Cancer Heterogeneity

Breast tumor heterogeneity is a major challenge in the clinical management of breast cancer patients. Both inter-tumor and intra-tumor heterogeneity imply that each breast cancer (BC) could have different prognosis and would benefit from specific therapy. Breast cancer is a dynamic entity, changing during tumor progression and metastatization and this poses fundamental issues to the feasibility of a personalized medicine approach. The most effective therapeutic strategy for patients with recurrent disease should be assessed evaluating biopsies obtained from metastatic sites. Furthermore, the tumor progression and the treatment response should be strictly followed and radiogenomics and liquid biopsy might be valuable tools to assess BC heterogeneity in a non-invasive way.

Automated summary

Breast tumor heterogeneity presents a major challenge in the clinical management of breast cancer patients, with each breast cancer potentially having different prognosis and benefiting from specific therapy. The dynamic nature of breast cancer, evolving during tumor progression and metastatization, poses challenges for personalized medicine approaches. Evaluation of biopsies from metastatic sites is crucial for determining the most effective therapeutic strategy for recurrent disease, with radiogenomics and liquid biopsy being valuable non-invasive tools for assessing breast cancer heterogeneity.