JoVE - Journal of Visualized Experiments
JoVE Visualize
Contact Us

Is Body Mass Index a Prognostic Factor in Metastatic HER2-Positive Breast Cancer? A Real-World Multicenter Study

  • 0Department of Medical Oncology, Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa, 34098 Istanbul, Türkiye.
Medicina +

|

September 27, 2025

|

September 27, 2025

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Body mass index (BMI) did not significantly impact survival in metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer overall. However, obesity was linked to shorter survival in hormone receptor-positive patients in initial analysis, requiring further investigation.

Area Of Science

  • Oncology
  • Clinical Research
  • Epidemiology

Background

  • Prognostic significance of body mass index (BMI) in metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer (BC) is uncertain.
  • Previous studies on BMI and outcomes in this BC subtype have shown conflicting results.

Purpose Of The Study

  • To investigate the prognostic role of BMI in patients with metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer.
  • To analyze the association between BMI and overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in this population.

Main Methods

  • Multicenter real-world study including 169 female patients with metastatic HER2-positive BC treated with trastuzumab-based therapy.
  • Patients categorized by BMI (<30 kg/m² vs. ≥30 kg/m²).
  • Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses performed, with subgroup analysis by hormone receptor (HR) status.

Main Results

  • Overall cohort: No significant association between BMI ≥ 30 kg/m² and OS or PFS.
  • HR-positive/HER2-positive subgroup: BMI ≥ 30 kg/m² linked to shorter OS and PFS in univariate analysis (p=0.024, p=0.047), but not in multivariate analysis.
  • No significant BMI differences in HR-negative subgroup. Recurrent disease, brain metastases, and high Ki-67 were negative prognostic factors.

Conclusions

  • BMI is not an independent prognostic factor in the overall metastatic HER2-positive BC population.
  • Obesity showed a univariate association with poorer survival in HR-positive/HER2-positive patients, but this was not confirmed in multivariate analysis.
  • Further prospective studies are needed to clarify the role of adiposity in different BC subtypes.

Keywords: