Surgery is the primary treatment for non-metastatic
breast cancer. However, the risk of early recurrence remains
after surgical removal of the primary tumor. Recurrence is
suggested to result from hidden micrometastatic foci, which
are triggered to escape from dormancy by surgical resection of
the primary tumor. In this study, we focused on the differential
impact of breast surgery on the serum profiles of early breast
cancer patients and healthy women. Serum samples from
invasive breast cancer patients, in situ carcinoma breast cancer
patients and healthy women were analyzed using reverse phase
protein array technology. Samples were collected prior to breast
surgery and 24 h following breast surgery. Both the expression
level and the velocity of 42 serum proteins were quantified and
compared among groups. We found that surgery increased
the concentration of several proteins (CSF1, THSB2, IL6, IL7,
IL16, FasL and VEGF-B) in the overall population. Compared
with healthy women and patients with non-invasive tumors,
invasive tumor patients exhibited higher preoperative levels of
several serum proteins, such as αFP, IFNβ1, VEGF-A, IL18,
E-cadherin or CD31, and lower postoperative levels of TNFα
and IL5. Similarly, we detected significant surgery-induced
changes in the velocity of VEGF-A and IL16 accumulation
in samples derived from invasive breast cancer patients. In
conclusion, breast surgery induced distinct changes in the
concentrations and dynamics of serum proteins in invasive
breast cancer patients compared with healthy women and noninvasive
tumor patients.
