Pathogens (Nov 2022)

The Bio-Diversity and the Role of Gut Microbiota in Postmenopausal Women with Luminal Breast Cancer Treated with Aromatase Inhibitors: An Observational Cohort Study

  • Angioletta Lasagna,
  • Mara De Amici,
  • Chiara Rossi,
  • Valentina Zuccaro,
  • Marta Corbella,
  • Greta Petazzoni,
  • Francesco Comandatore,
  • Lucia Sacchi,
  • Giorgia Testa,
  • Elisa Ferraris,
  • Gianpiero Rizzo,
  • Richard Tancredi,
  • Alessandra Ferrari,
  • Marco Lucioni,
  • Paolo Sacchi,
  • Raffaele Bruno,
  • Paolo Pedrazzoli

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens11121421
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 12
p. 1421

Abstract

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The interactions between aromatase inhibitors (AI) in breast cancer (BC) and gut microbiota (GM) have not been completely established yet. The aim of the study is to evaluate the bio-diversity of GM and the relationship between GM, inflammation and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in postmenopausal women with BC during adjuvant AI treatment compared to women with disease relapse during or after one year of AI therapy (“endocrine-resistant”). We conducted a monocenter observational case-control study. Eighty-four women with BC (8 cases, 76 controls) were enrolled from 2019 to 2021. We observed a significant difference in the mean microbial abundance between the two groups for the taxonomic rank of order (p 0.035) and family (p 0.029); specifically, the case group showed higher diversity than the control group. Veillonella reached its maximum abundance in cases (p 0.022). Cytokine levels were compared among the groups created considering the TILs levels. We obtained a statistically significant difference (p 0.045) in IL-17 levels among the groups, with patients with low TILs levels showing a higher median value for IL-17 (0.15 vs. 0.08 pg/mL). Further studies about the bio-diversity in women with BC may lead to the development of new biomarkers and targeted interventions.

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