Work

726 Soluble HVEM is associated with pathological complete response in triple-negative breast cancer

Year: 2026

Type: conference-abstract

Abstract: Background Despite advances in immunotherapy for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), outcomes remain poor, highlighting an unmet clinical need. The BTLA/HVEM/CD160 immune checkpoint pathway is underexplored in TNBC pathogenesis. Current biomarker studies largely focus on membrane-bound proteins across malignancies, including TNBC, underscoring the need to investigate additional immune pathways and novel biomarkers to improve the prediction of response and patient outcomes.Methods The current analysis explores plasma concentrations of 11 soluble biomarkers, including sHVEM, sBLTA, sCD160, sPD-1, sPD-L1, sCD27, sGITR, sGITRL, sLIGHT, sTGF-β, and sTNF-β, in a cohort of newly diagnosed early TNBC pts (n = 61) undergoing NAC (anthracycline, taxane +/- platinum-based) and in healthy controls (n = 20). Among the TNBC pts, 30 achieved a complete pathological response (pCR), and 31 did not. We measured pretreatment and post-NAC biomarker levels using Multiplex ® bead array and ELISA platforms. Data were prospectively obtained. Biomarker levels were compared using the Mann-Whitney/Wilcoxon tests. Ethics approval was granted by the University of Pretoria, number 517/2017.Results There were significant differences in pre-treatment sHVEM levels between pts who achieved a pCR and those who did not (2305,35 pg/ml vs. 3571,43 pg/ml, p < 0,0000) ( table 1). Additionally, there was a significant increase in pre- and post-treatment values for those who achieved a pCR (2305,35 pg/ml vs. 3176,36 pg/ml, p < 0.0093), and a significant decrease for those who did not achieve a pCR (table 1). There were no significant differences in pre- and post-treatment levels for sBTLA, sCD160, sPD-1, and sPD-L1. Additional biomarker and clustering data will be presented.Conclusions This study demonstrates that sHVEM levels move in opposite directions in pts who attain a pCR compared with those who do not. These findings should be validated in a larger cohort of pts to establish the prognostic and predictive value of sHVEM for the management of TNBC.Ethics Approval Ethics approval was granted by the University of Pretoria, number 517/2017.Abstract 726 Table 1Comparison of pre- and post-treatment sHVEM levels in pCR vs. non-pCR patients

Source: Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer

DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2026-sitc2026.0726