Abstract Introduction: Metaplastic breast cancer (MpBC) represents a rare subtype, constituting 1% of all breast cancer cases. It is pathologically characterized by epithelial and mesenchymal cellular components exhibiting a basal molecular pattern, hormone receptor and HER2-negativity, and high grade. Clinically, MpBC exhibits an aggressive course with early disease progression and poor survival. Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) have been shown to penetrate the central nervous system (CNS); however, little is known about the response of ADCs in MpBC, particularly in patients with CNS disease. Here we aimed to describe features of CNS disease in a subset of patients (pts) who received an ADC for MpBC . Methods: We conducted a multi-institutional retrospective observational study of pts with advanced MpBC treated with ADCs at 4 NCI-designated cancer centers (abstract #A-345). This analysis includes a subset of this cohort with CNS metastases, with the aim of examining the incidence, characteristics, and treatment patterns. Clinical outcomes were evaluated for pts with information available, including CNS median progression-free survival (mPFS; defined from initiation of systemic therapy to time of further documented CNS progression or death) and median real world PFS (rwPFS; defined from time of treatment initiation to documented disease progression or death). Results: We identified 48 pts with MpBC who received an ADC. Among them, we identified 15 (31%) who developed CNS metastases. Of these, the majority (n=11, 73%) had triple-negative breast cancer, and 4 (27%) had HER2-positive breast cancer. The median age was 50 years (32-75 years). The median interval from the initial MpBC diagnosis to CNS metastasis was 13 months (0-54 months). Excluding those with de novo CNS disease, the median interval from time of metastatic diagnosis to development of CNS metastasis mets was 3 months (0-22 months). 4 (27%) pts had de-novo metastatic disease, of which 2 (50%) presented with CNS disease. 4 (27%) pts had screening CNS imaging prior to their diagnosis of CNS metastatic disease. At the time of CNS disease diagnosis, 9 (60%) pts had oligometastatic intraparenchymal CNS disease (defined as 5 CNS mets), 5 (33%) had diffuse (5 CNS mets) CNS disease, and 1 (6%) had leptomeningeal and intraparenchymal disease. Most pts 14(93%) with CNS disease were symptomatic at time of diagnosis. One pt underwent resection, 9 (60%) underwent stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), 6 (40%) underwent whole brain radiation therapy (WBRT), and 1 pt received intrathecal chemotherapy with methotrexate. The median number of lines in the metastatic setting prior to documented CNS disease was 1 (range 0-3). The majority 13 (87%) underwent a change in systemic therapy at time of CNS disease diagnosis, with 60% changing to an ADC at the time of CNS diagnosis or progression. Among pts with progression of CNS disease warranting change in systemic therapy, the median time from first CNS event to further CNS progression was 6.5 months. Median CNS PFS was 3.5 months (range 1 -74 months) and median rwPFS was 4.4 months. For those patients who used ADCs after diagnosis of metastatic CNS diagnosis (12/15), median rwPFS was 4 months. Conclusions: Within this CNS sub-cohort study, we found that 31% of pts with MpBC developed CNS metastasis. The majority of pts had neurological symptoms at diagnosis, but most pts did not undergo routing screening for CNS disease. Given the high rate of CNS mets within a short timeframe from diagnosis with poor outcomes, CNS screening should be considered. The extremely short median CNS PFS and low median rwPFS of this cohort highlight the guarded prognosis associated with MpBC. Given the small sample size of this cohort, larger studies are warranted to validate these findings. Citation Format: S. Premji, S. Jacob, A. LeVee, S. Marion, S. Fisch, L. Huppert, J. Mortimer, D. Schmolze, A. Nayak, A. DeMichele, P. Shah, R. Leon-Ferre, D. Idossa. Central nervous system disease in patients with metaplastic breast cancer receiving antibody drug conjugates: a multi-institutional study abstract. In: Proceedings of the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium 2025; 2025 Dec 9-12; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2026;32(4 Suppl):Abstract nr PS1-09-07.
Premji et al. (Tue,) studied this question.