Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42520478›Full record

ArticleTranslational oncology2026

Spatial proteomic profiling reveals an association between NF1-Ras/Raf/MEK signaling and immune cell infiltration in locally advanced triple-negative breast cancer.

Vasudeva Bhat, Emily Goebel, Carl Postenka, Anayra de Fatima Goncalves Santiago, Yang Wei, Muriel Brackstone, Alison L Allan, Armen Parsyan

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Translational oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Vasudeva BhatDepartment of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5C1, Canada; Department of Oncology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5W9, Canada; Verspeeten Family Cancer Centre, London Health Sciences Centre and London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute, London, ON, N6A 4L6, Canada. Electronic address: vbhat@uwo.ca.
Emily GoebelDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada; St Joseph's Health Care London, ON, N6A 4V2, Canada.
Carl PostenkaVerspeeten Family Cancer Centre, London Health Sciences Centre and London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute, London, ON, N6A 4L6, Canada.
Anayra de Fatima Goncalves SantiagoDepartment of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5C1, Canada.
Yang WeiBruker Spatial Biology, 3350 Monte Villa Parkway, Bothell, WA 98021, USA.
Muriel BrackstoneDepartment of Oncology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5W9, Canada; St Joseph's Health Care London, ON, N6A 4V2, Canada; Department of Surgery, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, London, ON, N6A 4V2, Canada.
Alison L AllanDepartment of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5C1, Canada; Department of Oncology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5W9, Canada; Verspeeten Family Cancer Centre, London Health Sciences Centre and London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute, London, ON, N6A 4L6, Canada.
Armen ParsyanDepartment of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5C1, Canada; Department of Oncology, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 5W9, Canada; Verspeeten Family Cancer Centre, London Health Sciences Centre and London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute, London, ON, N6A 4L6, Canada; St Joseph's Health Care London, ON, N6A 4V2, Canada; Department of Surgery, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, London, ON, N6A 4V2, Canada. Electronic address: aparsyan@uwo.ca.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTriple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a highly aggressive malignancy characterized by significant molecular heterogeneity with a limited range of targeted therapy options. Better resolution of the spatial interactions between tumor cells and the immune microenvironment is essential for identifying actionable vulnerabilities.

methodsHere we employed GeoMx Digital Spatial Profiling (DSP) to investigate the proteomic landscape of 72 immuno-oncology biomarkers in normal breast, primary breast cancer, and metastatic axillary lymph node tissues of treatment-naïve TNBC patients (n=29) who underwent upfront breast surgery.

resultsThrough comprehensive profiling, we identified the tumor suppressor protein, neurofibromin (NF1), as one of the vulnerabilities in TNBC. Spatially resolved analysis revealed that NF1 downregulation is strongly associated with Ras/Raf/MEK pathway activation. This downregulation of NF1 level was characteristic of tumor regions with a high representation of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). Furthermore, low NF1 levels significantly correlated with reduced disease-free survival, suggesting its potential clinical utility as a biomarker. We also observed a high degree of proteomic similarity between primary breast tumors and the matched lymph node metastases.

conclusionsThese findings advance our understanding of TNBC spatial proteomic profiles and suggest that targeting the NF1-Ras/Raf/MEK axis may offer novel strategy for clinical management of TNBC patients with immune "hot" tumors.

Indexed as

BiomarkersNeurofibromin type 1NF1Spatial proteomicsTNBCTriple-negative breast cancerTumor infiltrating lymphocytesTumor microenvironment

Identifiers

PMID42520478
PMCPMC13446292

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.