Objective
To investigate the coagulation-related parameters in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients and the clinical significance.
Methods
According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria,174 patients with stage Ⅰto Ⅲa breast cancer in Wuxi Women and Children's Hospital from January 2015 to August 2016 were involved in this retrospective study. Based on molecular subtypes, there were 32 patients with luminal A subtype,55 luminal B,37 HER-2 overexpression and 50 TNBC. Another 36 patients with benign breast tumor served as control group. Before treatment, their whole blood and serum samples were collected for measuring the coagulation-related parameters, including prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), thrombin time(TT), prothrombin time-international normalized ratio (PTINR), fibrinogen (Fib), and blood platelet count (BPC). All parameters were expressed as ±s and compared among multiple groups using single factor analysis of variance.The mean values between two groups were compared using t test and pairwise comparison was performed using LSD method.
Results
There were significant differences in APTT, PT, PT-INR, Fib and TT among groups (F=3.083,4.680,8.272,5.426,3.919, P<0.050), but there was no significant difference in BPC (F=1.326, P=0.265). The patients in TNBC group had significantly lower levels of APTT, PT and PT-INR than those in control group [(25.92±2.80) s vs (27.76±3.84) s, P <0.050; (11.77±0.68) s vs (12.27±0.87) s, P<0.050; (0.99±0.59)s vs (1.05±0.75) s, P <0.050], while Fib and TT were significantly higher [(2.59±0.45) s vs (2.12±0.42) s, P<0.050; (20.07±1.31) s vs (19.20±1.39) s, P<0.050]. The patients in TNBC group had significantly lower PT and PT-INR compared with luminal B group [(11.77±0.68) s vs (12.21±0.69) s, P <0.050; (0.99±0.59) s vs (1.04±0.06) s, P<0.050], and significantly higher Fib and TT [(2.59±0.45) s vs (2.37±0.58) s, P<0.050;(20.07±1.31) s vs (19.22±1.26) s, P <0.050]. The patients in TNBC group had significantly increased TT compared with HER-2 overexpression group [(20.07±1.31) s vs (19.50±1.31) s, P <0.050]. In TNBC group, the patients with lymph node metastasis had lower APTT than those without lymph node metastasis[(24.12±0.75) s vs (26.43±2.70) s, t = -2.550, P = 0.014]; the postmenopausal patients had lower PT and PT-INR compared with premenopausal patients [(11.65±0.70) s vs(12.08±0.55) s, t=-2.094,P=0.042; (0.98±0.61) s vs (1.02±0.44) s, t=-2.272,P=0.028]. The coagulation-related parameters (APTT,PT,PT-INR,Fib and TT) showed no significant difference between the patients with tumor diameter ≤2 cm and the patients with tumor diameter >2 cm but ≤5 cm (t=-0.946,0.225, -1.321, -1.098, -1.376, -1.820, all P>0.050).
Conclusions
The breast cancer patients have hypercoagulable state, especially TNBC. The postmenopausal TNBC patients or the patients with lymph node metastasis may be in risk of thrombosis.