Table 2.

First-line chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer

	CHEK2		Non-CHEK2		P
	N	%	N	%
Type of chemotherapy
Anthracycline baseda	34	55	39	63	0.25
Taxane basedb	6	10	10	16
Anthracycline/taxane regimenc	1	2	1	2
CMF/CMF-like	21	34	12	19
Best response
Objective response	27	44	32	52	0.71
Stable disease	21	35	18	29
Progressive disease	13	21	12	19
Unknown	1
Clinical benefit (objective response and stable disease >6 months)	47	77	48	77	0.96
Progressive disease
During chemotherapy	26	42	27	44	0.92
After chemotherapy
No consolidation endocrine therapy	18	29	19	31
Consolidation endocrine therapy	18	29	16	26
Anthracycline-based therapy
Number of patients	34		39
Best response
Objective response	18	52	17	43	0.70
Stable disease	8	24	12	31
Progressive disease	8	24	10	26
Clinical benefit (objective response and stable disease >6 months)	25	74	27	69	0.69

CMF cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and fluorouracil

^aAnthracycline-based chemotherapy consisted of the following regimens: 19 × FAC, 14 × FEC, 3 × AC in the CHEK2 group (for three cases, the specific regimen was unknown) and 23 × FAC, 7 × FEC and 4 × AC in the non-CHEK2 group (FAC fluorouracil, adriamycin, cyclophosphamide, FEC fluorouracil, epirubicin, cyclophosphamide and AC adriamycin, cyclophosphamide)

^bTaxanes were given 2× in combination with trastuzumab in the CHEK2 group; and 3× in combination with trastuzumab, 1× in combination with bevacizumab, 1× in combination with trastuzumab and bevacizumab, 2× in combination with methotrexate in the non-CHEK2 group

^cAnthracycline/taxane regimen consisted of adriamycin and docetaxel in the CHEK2 patient and of FAC followed by docetaxel in the non-CHEK2 patient