@article{MontalbandelBarrioPenskiSchlahsaetal.2016,
  author    = {Montalb{\´a}n del Barrio, Itsaso and Penski, Cornelia and Schlahsa, Laura and Stein, Roland G. and Diessner, Joachim and W{\"o}ckel, Achim and Dietl, Johannes and Lutz, Manfred B. and Mittelbronn, Michel and Wischhusen, J{\"o}rg and H{\"a}usler, Sebastian F. M.},
  title     = {Adenosine-generating ovarian cancer cells attract myeloid cells which differentiate into adenosine-generating tumor associated macrophages - a self-amplifying, CD39- and CD73-dependent mechanism for tumor immune escape},
  series = {Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer},
  volume    = {4},
  journal   = {Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer},
  number    = {49},
  doi       = {10.1186/s40425-016-0154-9},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-146624},
  year      = {2016},
  abstract  = {Background Ovarian cancer (OvCA) tissues show abundant expression of the ectonucleotidases CD39 and CD73 which generate immunomodulatory adenosine, thereby inhibiting cytotoxic lymphocytes. Little, however, is known about the effect of adenosine on myeloid cells. Considering that tumor associated macrophages (TAM) and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) constitute up to 20 \% of OvCA tissue, we investigated the effect of adenosine on myeloid cells and explored a possible contribution of myeloid cells to adenosine generation in vitro and ex vivo. Methods Monocytes were used as human blood-derived myeloid cells. After co-incubation with SK-OV-3 or OAW-42 OvCA cells, monocyte migration was determined in transwell assays. For conversion into M2-polarized "TAM-like" macrophages, monocytes were co-incubated with OAW-42 cells. Ex vivo TAMs were obtained from OvCA ascites. Macrophage phenotypes were investigated by intracellular staining for IL-10 and IL-12. CD39 and CD73 expression were assessed by FACS analysis both on in vitro-induced TAM-like macrophages and on ascites-derived ex situ-TAMs. Myeloid cells in solid tumor tissue were analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Generation of biologically active adenosine by TAM-like macrophages was measured in luciferase-based reporter assays. Functional effects of adenosine were investigated in proliferation-experiments with CD4+ T cells and specific inhibitors. Results When CD39 or CD73 activity on OvCA cells were blocked, the migration of monocytes towards OvCA cells was significantly decreased. In vivo, myeloid cells in solid ovarian cancer tissue were found to express CD39 whereas CD73 was mainly detected on stromal fibroblasts. Ex situ-TAMs and in vitro differentiated TAM-like cells, however, upregulated the expression of CD39 and CD73 compared to monocytes or M1 macrophages. Expression of ectonucleotidases also translated into increased levels of biologically active adenosine. Accordingly, co-incubation with these TAMs suppressed CD4+ T cell proliferation which could be rescued via blockade of CD39 or CD73. Conclusion Adenosine generated by OvCA cells likely contributes to the recruitment of TAMs which further amplify adenosine-dependent immunosuppression via additional ectonucleotidase activity. In solid ovarian cancer tissue, TAMs express CD39 while CD73 is found on stromal fibroblasts. Accordingly, small molecule inhibitors of CD39 or CD73 could improve immune responses in ovarian cancer.},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Diessner2009,
  author    = {Diessner, Ernst Joachim},
  title     = {Konstruktion eines Balanced lethal Systems f{\"u}r Salmonella typhi Ty21a},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-51638},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2009},
  abstract  = {Ziel der Arbeit ist unter anderem die Entwicklung von Vakzinen gegen maligne Neoplasien auf der Basis von attenuierten Bakterien. Sie dienen hierbei als Tr{\"a}ger von tumorspezifischen Antigenen. Diese k{\"o}nnen mit Hilfe des E. coli H{\"a}molysin-a-Sekretionssystems von Salmonella-Bakterienst{\"a}mmen sezerniert werden und eine spezifische Immunreaktion induzieren. Sowohl die Gene, die f{\"u}r das Sekretionssystem kodieren als auch die Gensequenzen des tumorspezifische Antigens sind bei dem Projekt auf dem detailliert beschriebenen Antigendelivery Plasmid pMO kodiert. Die bis dato angewandte Methode der pMO-Plasmidstabilisierung mit Hilfe von Antibiotikaresistenzgenen beinhaltet jedoch zahlreiche, beschriebene Probleme und wird seitens der Beh{\"o}rden in Impfst{\"a}mmen zunehmend restriktiv gehandhabt. Im Rahmen der Entwicklung eines bakteriellen Tumorimpfstoffes war es daher das Ziel dieser Arbeit ein System zur Stabilisierung des Antigendelivery Plasmids pMO zu etablieren, das auf den Einsatz von Antibiotikaresistenzgenen verzichtet.},
  subject      = {Salmonella},
  language  = {de}
}
@article{HaeuslerdelBarrioDiessneretal.2014,
  author    = {H{\"a}usler, Sebastian F. M. and del Barrio, Itsaso Montalb{\´a}n and Diessner, Joachim and Stein, Roland G. and Strohschein, Jenny and H{\"o}nig, Arnd and Dietl, Johannes and Wischhusen, J{\"o}rg},
  title     = {Anti-CD39 and anti-CD73 antibodies A1 and 7G2 improve targeted therapy in ovarian cancer by blocking adenosine-dependent immune evasion},
  series = {American Journal of Translational Research},
  volume    = {6},
  journal   = {American Journal of Translational Research},
  number    = {2},
  issn      = {1943-8141},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-120016},
  pages     = {129-139},
  year      = {2014},
  abstract  = {The ectonucleotidases CD39 and CD73 degrade ATP to adenosine which inhibits immune responses via the \(A_{2A}\) adenosine receptor (ADORA2A) on T and NK cells. The current study investigates the potential therapeutic use of the specific anti CD39- and anti CD73-antibodies A1 (CD39) and 7G2 (CD73) as these two ectonucleotidases are overexpressed in ovarian cancer (OvCA). As expected, NK cell cytotoxicity against the human ovarian cancer cell lines OAW-42 or SK-OV-3 was significantly increased in the presence of A1 or 7G2 antibody. While this might partly be due to antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity, a luciferase-dependent assay for quantifying biologically active adenosine further showed that A1 and 7G2 can inhibit CD39 and CD73-dependent adenosine-generation. In turn, the reduction in adenosine levels achieved by addition of A1 and 7G2 to OAW-42 or SK-OV-3 cells was found to de-inhibit the proliferation of \(CD4^+\) T cells in coculture with OvCA cells. Likewise, blocking of CD39 and CD73 on OvCA cells via A1 and 7G2 led to an increased cytotoxicity of alloreactive primed T cells. Thus, antibodies like A1 and 7G2 could improve targeted therapy in ovarian cancer not only by specifically labeling overexpressed antigens but also by blocking adenosine-dependent immune evasion in this immunogenic malignancy.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{DiessnerBruttelBeckeretal.2013,
  author    = {Diessner, Joachim and Bruttel, Valentin and Becker, Kathrin and Pawlik, Miriam and Stein, Roland and H{\"a}usler, Sebastian and Dietl, Johannes and Wischhusen, J{\"o}rg and H{\"o}nig, Arnd},
  title     = {Targeting breast cancer stem cells with HER2-specific antibodies and natural killer cells},
  series = {American Journal of Cancer Research},
  volume    = {3},
  journal   = {American Journal of Cancer Research},
  number    = {2},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-128633},
  pages     = {221-220},
  year      = {2013},
  abstract  = {Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide. Every year, nearly 1.4 million new cases of breast cancer are diagnosed, and about 450.000 women die of the disease. Approximately 15-25\% of breast cancer cases exhibit increased quantities of the trans-membrane receptor tyrosine kinase human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) on the tumor cell surface. Previous studies showed that blockade of this HER2 proto-oncogene with the antibody trastuzumab substantially improved the overall survival of patients with this aggressive type of breast cancer. Recruitment of natural killer (NK) cells and subsequent induction of antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) contributed to this beneficial effect. We hypothesized that antibody binding to HER2-positive breast cancer cells and thus ADCC might be further improved by synergistically applying two different HER2-specific antibodies, trastuzumab and pertuzumab. We found that tumor cell killing via ADCC was increased when the combination of trastuzumab, pertuzumab, and NK cells was applied to HER2-positive breast cancer cells, as compared to the extent of ADCC induced by a single antibody. Furthermore, a subset of \(CD44^{high}CD24^{low}HER2^{low}\) cells, which possessed characteristics of cancer stem cells, could be targeted more efficiently by the combination of two HER2-specific antibodies compared to the efficiency of one antibody. These in vitro results demonstrated the immunotherapeutic benefit achieved by the combined application of trastuzumab and pertuzumab. These findings are consistent with the positive results of the clinical studies, CLEOPATRA and NEOSPHERE, conducted with patients that had HER2-positive breast cancer. Compared to a single antibody treatment, the combined application of trastuzumab and pertuzumab showed a stronger ADCC effect and improved the targeting of breast cancer stem cells.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{BartmannFischerHuebneretal.2021,
  author    = {Bartmann, Catharina and Fischer, Leah-Maria and H{\"u}bner, Theresa and M{\"u}ller-Reiter, Max and W{\"o}ckel, Achim and McNeill, Rhiannon V. and Schlaiss, Tanja and Kittel-Schneider, Sarah and K{\"a}mmerer, Ulrike and Diessner, Joachim},
  title     = {The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychological stress in breast cancer patients},
  series = {BMC Cancer},
  volume    = {21},
  journal   = {BMC Cancer},
  doi       = {10.1186/s12885-021-09012-y},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-265802},
  year      = {2021},
  abstract  = {Background: The majority of breast cancer patients are severely psychologically affected by breast cancer diagnosis and subsequent therapeutic procedures. The COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions on public life have additionally caused significant psychological distress for much of the population. It is therefore plausible that breast cancer patients might be particularly susceptible to the additional psychological stress caused by the pandemic, increasing suffering. In this study we therefore aimed to assess the level of psychological distress currently experienced by a defined group of breast cancer patients in our breast cancer centre, compared to distress levels preCOVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Female breast cancer patients of all ages receiving either adjuvant, neoadjuvant, or palliative therapies were recruited for the study. All patients were screened for current or previous COVID-19 infection. The participants completed a self-designed COVID-19 pandemic questionnaire, the Stress and Coping Inventory (SCI), the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (R) (NCCN (R)) Distress Thermometer (DT), the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ C30, and the BR23. Results: Eighty-two breast cancer patients were included. Therapy status and social demographic factors did not have a significant effect on the distress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The results of the DT pre and during COVID-19 pandemic did not differ significantly. Using the self-designed COVID-19 pandemic questionnaire, we detected three distinct subgroups demonstrating different levels of concerns in relation to SARS-CoV-2. The subgroup with the highest levels of concern reported significantly decreased life quality, related parameters and symptoms. Conclusions: This monocentric study demonstrated that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected psychological health in a subpopulation of breast cancer patients. The application of a self-created "COVID-19 pandemic questionnaire"could potentially be used to help identify breast cancer patients who are susceptible to increased psychological distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and therefore may need additional intensive psychological support.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{DiessnerAndersHerbertetal.2023,
  author    = {Diessner, Joachim and Anders, Laura and Herbert, Saskia and Kiesel, Matthias and Bley, Thorsten and Schlaiss, Tanja and Sauer, Stephanie and W{\"o}ckel, Achim and Bartmann, Catharina},
  title     = {Evaluation of different imaging modalities for axillary lymph node staging in breast cancer patients to provide a personalized and optimized therapy algorithm},
  series = {Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical Oncology},
  volume    = {149},
  journal   = {Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical Oncology},
  number    = {7},
  doi       = {10.1007/s00432-022-04221-9},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-324047},
  pages     = {3457-3467},
  year      = {2023},
  abstract  = {Purpose The reliable detection of tumor-infiltrated axillary lymph nodes for breast cancer [BC] patients plays a decisive role in further therapy. We aimed to find out whether cross-sectional imaging techniques could improve sensitivity for pretherapeutic axillary staging in nodal-positive BC patients compared to conventional imaging such as mammography and sonography. Methods Data for breast cancer patients with tumor-infiltrated axillary lymph nodes having received surgery between 2014 and 2020 were included in this study. All examinations (sonography, mammography, computed tomography [CT] and magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]) were interpreted by board-certified specialists in radiology. The sensitivity of different imaging modalities was calculated, and binary logistic regression analyses were performed to detect variables influencing the detection of positive lymph nodes. Results All included 382 breast cancer patients had received conventional imaging, while 52.61\% of the patients had received cross-sectional imaging. The sensitivity of the combination of all imaging modalities was 68.89\%. The combination of MRI and CT showed 63.83\% and the combination of sonography and mammography showed 36.11\% sensitivity. Conclusion We could demonstrate that cross-sectional imaging can improve the sensitivity of the detection of tumor-infiltrated axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer patients. Only the safe detection of these lymph nodes at the time of diagnosis enables the evaluation of the response to neoadjuvant therapy, thereby allowing access to prognosis and improving new post-neoadjuvant therapies.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{LoebLinsmeierHerbertetal.2023,
  author    = {L{\"o}b, Sanja and Linsmeier, Eva and Herbert, Saskia-Laureen and Schlaiß, Tanja and Kiesel, Matthias and Wischhusen, J{\"o}rg and Salmen, Jessica and Kranke, Peter and Quenzer, Anne and Kurz, Florian and Weiss, Claire and Gerhard-Hartmann, Elena and W{\"o}ckel, Achim and Diessner, Joachim},
  title     = {Prognostic effect of HER2 evolution from primary breast cancer to breast cancer metastases},
  series = {Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical Oncology},
  volume    = {149},
  journal   = {Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical Oncology},
  number    = {8},
  doi       = {10.1007/s00432-022-04486-0},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-324068},
  pages     = {5417-5428},
  year      = {2023},
  abstract  = {Purpose Therapeutic options for breast cancer (BC) treatment are constantly evolving. The Human Epidermal Growth Factor 2 (HER2)-low BC entity is a new subgroup, representing about 55\% of all BC patients. New antibody-drug conjugates demonstrated promising results for this BC subgroup. Currently, there is limited information about the conversion of HER2 subtypes between primary tumor and recurrent disease. Methods This retrospective study included women with BC at the University Medical Centre Wuerzburg from 1998 to 2021. Data were retrieved from patients' records. HER2 evolution from primary diagnosis to the first relapse and the development of secondary metastases was investigated. Results In the HR-positive subgroup without HER2 overexpression, HER2-low expression in primary BC was 56.7 vs. 14.6\% in the triple-negative subgroup (p < 0.000). In the cohort of the first relapse, HER2-low represented 64.1\% of HR-positive vs. 48.2\% of the triple-negative cohort (p = 0.03). In patients with secondary metastases, HER2-low was 75.6\% vs. 50\% in the triple negative subgroup (p = 0.10). The subgroup of HER2-positive breast cancer patients numerically increased in the course of disease; the HER2-negative overall cohort decreased. A loss of HER2 expression from primary BC to the first relapse correlated with a better OS (p = 0.018). No clinicopathological or therapeutic features could be identified as potential risk factors for HER2 conversion. Conclusion HER2 expression is rising during the progression of BC disease. In view of upcoming therapeutical options, the re-analysis of newly developed metastasis will become increasingly important.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{HerbertHirzleBartmannetal.2023,
  author    = {Herbert, Saskia-Laureen and Hirzle, Paula and Bartmann, Catharina and Schlaiß, Tanja and Kiesel, Matthias and Curtaz, Carolin and L{\"o}b, Sanja and W{\"o}ckel, Achim and Diessner, Joachim},
  title     = {Optimized process quality in certified breast centers through adherence to stringent diagnostic and therapeutic algorithms effects of structural as well as socio-demographic factors on start of therapy},
  series = {Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics},
  volume    = {307},
  journal   = {Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics},
  number    = {4},
  doi       = {10.1007/s00404-022-06666-2},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-324057},
  pages     = {1097-1104},
  year      = {2023},
  abstract  = {Purpose An increasing incidence of breast cancer can be observed worldwide. Since a delay of therapy can have a negative impact on prognosis, timely cancer care is an important quality indicator. By receiving treatment at a certified breast cancer center, the patient has the best chance of treatment in accordance with guidelines and the best prognosis. The identification of risk factors for a delay of therapy is of central importance and should be the basis for a continuous optimization of treatment at breast cancer centers. Methods This retrospective study included women with breast cancer (primary diagnosis, relapse, or secondary malignancy) at the University Hospital W{\"u}rzburg in 2019 and 2020. Data were retrieved from patients' records. Correlations and regression analyses were performed to detect potential risk factors for treatment delay. Results Patients who received the histological confirmation of breast cancer at an external institution experienced a later therapy start than those patients who received the histological confirmation at the University Hospital W{\"u}rzburg itself. (35.7 vs. 32.2 days). The interval between histological confirmation and the first consultation at the University Hospital W{\"u}rzburg correlated statistically significant with age, distress and distance to the hospital. Conclusion Patients with an in-house diagnosis of breast cancer are treated more quickly than those whose diagnosis was confirmed in an external institution. We identified factors such as increased age, greater distance to the hospital as well as increased distress to prolong the time until start of oncological treatment. Intensified patient care should be offered to these subgroups.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{DiessnerWischnewskyStueberetal.2016,
  author    = {Diessner, Joachim and Wischnewsky, Manfred and St{\"u}ber, Tanja and Stein, Roland and Krockenberger, Mathias and H{\"a}usler, Sebastian and Janni, Wolfgang and Kreienberg, Rolf and Blettner, Maria and Schwentner, Lukas and W{\"o}ckel, Achim and Bartmann, Catharina},
  title     = {Evaluation of clinical parameters influencing the development of bone metastasis in breast cancer},
  series = {BMC Cancer},
  volume    = {16},
  journal   = {BMC Cancer},
  number    = {307},
  doi       = {10.1186/s12885-016-2345-7},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-161173},
  year      = {2016},
  abstract  = {Background The development of metastases is a negative prognostic parameter for the clinical outcome of breast cancer. Bone constitutes the first site of distant metastases for many affected women. The purpose of this retrospective multicentre study was to evaluate if and how different variables such as primary tumour stage, biological and histological subtype, age at primary diagnosis, tumour size, the number of affected lymph nodes as well as grading influence the development of bone-only metastases. Methods This retrospective German multicentre study is based on the BRENDA collective and included 9625 patients with primary breast cancer recruited from 1992 to 2008. In this analysis, we investigated a subgroup of 226 patients with bone-only metastases. Association between bone-only relapse and clinico-pathological risk factors was assessed in multivariate models using the tree-building algorithms "exhausted CHAID (Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detectors)" and CART(Classification and Regression Tree), as well as radial basis function networks (RBF-net), feedforward multilayer perceptron networks (MLP) and logistic regression. Results Multivariate analysis demonstrated that breast cancer subtypes have the strongest influence on the development of bone-only metastases (χ2 = 28). 29.9 \% of patients with luminal A or luminal B (ABC-patients) and 11.4 \% with triple negative BC (TNBC) or HER2-overexpressing tumours had bone-only metastases (p < 0.001). Five different mathematical models confirmed this correlation. The second important risk factor is the age at primary diagnosis. Moreover, BC subcategories influence the overall survival from date of metastatic disease of patients with bone-only metastases. Patients with bone-only metastases and TNBC (p < 0.001; HR = 7.47 (95 \% CI: 3.52-15.87) or HER2 overexpressing BC (p = 0.007; HR = 3.04 (95 \% CI: 1.36-6.80) have the worst outcome compared to patients with luminal A or luminal B tumours and bone-only metastases. Conclusion The bottom line of different mathematical models is the prior importance of subcategories of breast cancer and the age at primary diagnosis for the appearance of osseous metastases. The primary tumour stage, histological subtype, tumour size, the number of affected lymph nodes, grading and NPI seem to have only a minor influence on the development of bone-only metastases.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{KieselBeyersKaliszetal.2022,
  author    = {Kiesel, Matthias and Beyers, Inga and Kalisz, Adam and W{\"o}ckel, Achim and Herbert, Saskia-Laureen and Curtaz, Carolin and Diessner, Joachim and Joukhadar, Ralf and Wulff, Christine},
  title     = {Introducing a novel model for simulating large loop excision of the transformation zone (LLETZ) using 3D printing technique},
  series = {Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics},
  volume    = {305},
  journal   = {Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics},
  number    = {3},
  issn      = {1432-0711},
  doi       = {10.1007/s00404-021-06209-1},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-266739},
  pages     = {703-712},
  year      = {2022},
  abstract  = {Purpose Electrosurgery is the gold-standard procedure for the treatment of cervical dysplasia. The quality of the outcome depends on the accuracy of performance, which underlines the role of adequate training of surgeons, especially, as this procedure is often performed by novice surgeons. According to our knowledge, medical simulation has up until now lacked a model, which focuses on realistically simulating the treatment of cervical dysplasia with the concerning anatomy. Methods and Result In our work, we present a model created using 3D printing for holistically simulating diagnostic, as well as surgical interventions of the cervix, as realistically as possible. Conclusion This novel simulator is compared to an existing model and both are evaluated. By doing so, we aim to provide novice gynecologists with standardized and high-quality simulation models for practicing to improve their proficiency.},
  language  = {en}
}