Addition of trastuzumab to chemotherapy is the cornerstone of adjuvant treatment of early HER2 positive breast cancer. Clinical trials and metaanalyses of adjuvant trastuzumab have shown significant reduction in risk of recurrence and death. Nevertheless, the real magnitude of the effect of any drug must be reevaluated in daily clinical conditions, due to the fact that daily clinical practice often differs from conditions in clinical trials. In order to measure the benefit of adding adjuvant trastuzumab in HER 2 positive early breast cancer treatment, we have performed retrospective analysis in a single institution on consecutive patients divided in 2 cohorts: one, treated in "pre - trastuzumab" and the other in "trastuzumab era". Between 2003 and 2012, 258 consecutive HER 2 positive patients with early breast cancer have been treated with adjuvant chemotherapy, 103 patients did not received trastuzumab (patients treated from 2003 till 2007), and 155 (patients treated from 2008 till 2012) received trastuzumab. Patients who received trastuzumab experienced significantly longer median disease-free survival (107 vs. 92 months, LR: 11.6, p <0.001); breast cancer-specific survival (130 vs. 117 months, LR: 10.7, p < 0.001) and median overall survival (123 vs. 108 months LR = 11.6, p < 0.001). The benefits of adding trastuzumab were independent of chemotherapy regimen and hormonal therapy. This retrospective analysis has shown a clear, statistically significant benefit of adjuvant trastuzumab in treatment of early, HER2 positive breast cancer in daily clinical practice, and confirmed the results of the registration clinical trials.

Colorectal cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related mortality in adults. Understanding colorectal tumorigenesis at both the cellular and molecular levels is crucial for developing effective treatment options. Forty-one biopsy samples from patients with metastatic CRC (mCRC) were collected at Split University Hospital in Croatia. A total of 41 patients (21 with microsatellite unstable tumours and 20 with microsatellite stable tumours) were randomly included in the study. Immunolabelling of cGAS and STING in metastatic CRC was performed and further complemented by histological classification, tumour grade, and KRAS, NRAS, and BRAF mutational status of mCRC. In bivariate analysis, elevated expression of cGAS and STING was positively associated with MSI-H colon cancer (Fisher’s exact test, both p = 0.0203). Combined expression analysis of cGAS and STING showed a significantly higher percentage of patients with mCRC MSI-H with a fully or partially activated cGAS-STING signalling pathway (chi-square test, p = 0.0050). After adjusting for age, sex, and STING expression, increased cGAS expression remained significantly associated with MSI-H colon cancer in a multiple logistic regression model (β = 1.588, SE = ±0.799, p = 0.047). The cGAS-STING signalling axis represents a compelling new target for optimization of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapeutic approaches in patients with MSI-H stage IV CRC.