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. 2022 Jul;127(1):84-91.
doi: 10.1038/s41416-022-01770-1. Epub 2022 Mar 7.

The impact of oophorectomy on survival from breast cancer in patients with CHEK2 mutations

Joanna Tomiczek-Szwiec  1 , Marek Szwiec  2   3 , Michal Falco  4 , Cezary Cybulski  5 , Dominika Wokolorczyk  5 , Anna Jakubowska  5 , Jacek Gronwald  5 , Malgorzata Stawicka  6 , Dariusz Godlewski  7 , Ewa Kilar  8 , Elzbieta Marczyk  9 , Monika Siołek  10 , Rafal Wiśniowski  11 , Olga Haus  12 , Robert Sibilski  2   13 , Lubomir Bodnar  14 , Ping Sun  15 , Steven A Narod  16 , Jan Lubinski  5 , Tomasz Huzarski  5   6 ; Polish Breast Cancer Consortium
Collaborators, Affiliations

The impact of oophorectomy on survival from breast cancer in patients with CHEK2 mutations

Joanna Tomiczek-Szwiec et al. Br J Cancer. 2022 Jul.

Abstract

Background: To estimate the impact of oophorectomy and other treatments on the survival of breast cancer patients with a CHEK2 mutation.

Methods: Women with Stage I-III breast cancer who were treated at 17 hospitals in Poland were tested for four founder mutations in the CHEK2 gene. 974 women (10%) were positive for a CHEK2 mutation. Control patients without a CHEK2 mutation were selected from a database of patients treated over the same time period. Information on treatments received and distant recurrences were retrieved from medical records. Treatments included chemotherapy, hormonal therapy (tamoxifen) and radiation therapy. Oophorectomies were performed for the treatment of breast cancer or for benign conditions. Dates of death were obtained from the Polish Vital Statistics Registry. Causes of death were determined by medical record review. Predictors of survival were determined using the Cox proportional hazards model.

Results: In all, 839 patients with a CHEK2 mutation were matched to 839 patients without a mutation. The mean follow-up was 12.0 years. The 15-year survival for CHEK2 carriers was 76.6% and the 15-year survival for non-carrier control patients was 78.8% (adjusted HR = 1.06; 95% CI: 0.84-1.34; P = 0.61). Among CHEK2 carriers, the 15-year survival for women who had an oophorectomy was 86.3% and for women who did not have an oophorectomy was 72.1% (adjusted HR = 0.59; 95% CI: 0.38-0.90; P = 0.02). Among controls, the 15-year survival for patients who had an oophorectomy was 84.5% and for women who did not have an oophorectomy was 77.6% (adjusted HR = 1.03; 95% CI: 0.66-1.61; P = 0.90).

Conclusion: Among women with breast cancer and a CHEK2 mutation, oophorectomy is associated with a reduced risk of death from breast cancer.

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Conflict of interest statement

SAN is an editorial board member of BJC. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Fifteen year breast cancer-specific survival by CHEK2 mutation.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Fifteen years risk of contralateral breast cancer among CHEK2 carriers, by tamoxifen use.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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