The Prognostic Impact of HER2 Expression in Non-Metastatic HER2-Positive Breast Cancer Treated With Dual HER2-Targeted Therapy

January 21, 2026 updated by: Fangchao Zheng, MD, Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute

A Multicenter Retrospective Cohort Study Protocol on the Prognostic Impact of HER2 Expression in Non-Metastatic HER2-Positive Breast Cancer Treated With Dual HER2-Targeted Therapy

Previous studies suggest that among patients receiving trastuzumab monotherapy, a HER2/CEP17 ratio >7.0 (ultra-high expression) is associated with poorer disease-free survival (DFS). Dual-target therapy (trastuzumab + pertuzumab) has become the standard treatment for high-risk HER2-positive breast cancer; however, whether it can predict outcomes in patients with ultra-high HER2 expression remains unsupported by clinical data. To analyze the clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic relationship between the HER2 ultra-high expression group and the normal expression group in non-metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer patients who received dual-target therapy.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
300

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • China
    • Shandong
      • Jinan, Shandong, China
        • Recruiting
        • Department of Medical Oncology

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

HER2-positive patients with breast cancer were enrolled between January 2020 and December 2023.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Age ≥18 years.
  2. Pathologically confirmed primary breast cancer, clinical stage I-III (AJCC 8th Edition).
  3. HER2-positive status confirmed by FISH testing (per ASCO/CAP guidelines) with available HER2/CEP17 ratio.
  4. Received at least one dose of dual-target therapy (trastuzumab combined with pertuzumab) in the adjuvant or neoadjuvant setting.
  5. Underwent curative-intent surgery (mastectomy or breast-conserving surgery).

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Presence of distant metastasis (Stage IV) or contralateral breast cancer at initial diagnosis.
  2. Previous anti-HER2 targeted therapy prior to dual-target treatment.
  3. Missing key clinical data (e.g., HER2 FISH results, treatment regimen, surgery date).
  4. Carcinoma in situ or occult breast cancer, non-primary breast cancer, or concurrent other malignancies.
  5. Loss to follow-up or follow-up duration <3 months (unless recurrence or death occurred within this period).

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
HER2 FISH ultra
HER2/CEP17 FISH ratio in HER2-positive non-metastatic breast cancer
HER2 FISH normal
HER2/CEP17 FISH ratio in HER2-positive non-metastatic breast cancer

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Disease-free survival based on HER2/CEP17 ratio
Time Frame: From the date of pathological diagnosis to event with follow-up duration ≥3 months (unless recurrence or death occurred within 3 month).
Defined as the period from the date of pathological diagnosis until the date of the first relapse, appearance of non-breast primary cancer, death with no signs or symptoms of recurrence or metast, or the last recorded follow-up ,whichever came first.
From the date of pathological diagnosis to event with follow-up duration ≥3 months (unless recurrence or death occurred within 3 month).

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Shandong Cancer Hospital and Institute

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 10, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 10, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 20, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
January 12, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 21, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
January 29, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 29, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 21, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • SDTHEC202601024

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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