Circulating oxysterol metabolites as potential new surrogate markers in patients with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer: Results of the OXYTAM study

Selective changes in cholesterol metabolite levels in plasma of breast cancer patients after tumor removal

“…The present study differs from the previous one also in the fact that we followed breast cancer patients in the early stage I or II of the disease while Dalenc (2016) observed significantly higher levels of 25-hydroxycholesterol and 6-oxo-cholestan-3 β ,5 α -diol in metastatic patients compared with adjuvant-treated (i.e., clinically considered as tumor-free) patients. Together with our data, these results indirectly support the view that levels of oxysterols may vary not just as a result of the treatment but also reflect the presence of tumor cells in the patients’ bodies.…”

“…Griffiths 2016 for review) and thus their role in breast cancer is currently attracting considerable interest. Although human plasma levels of oxysterols have already been assessed by various authors (reviewed, e.g., in Mutemberezi 2016), there is currently only one very recent study reporting differences in levels of various oxysterols in plasma of breast cancer patients (Dalenc 2016). Thus, our study adds novel information essential for this evolving area of research.…”

“…The above cited study (Dalenc 2016) has shown that levels of oxysterols—including 25-hydroxycholesterol, 27-hydroxycholesterol, 7 α -hydroxycholesterol, and 7-ketocholesterol—can be reliably detected in patients plasma by high-performance gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC–MS). The present study used a different technique for oxysterol level detection, liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS).…”

“…This change was found both in all patients and in a subgroup with estrogen receptor-expressing tumors treated with tamoxifen, suggesting the general nature of this phenomenon. Dalenc (2016) compared patients on day 0 and 28 (n=27) after the beginning of endocrine therapy with tamoxifen or aromatase inhibitors and observed a number of significant changes between both samplings, but none for 7-ketocholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol.…”

Mass spectrometry profiling of oxysterols in human sperm identifies 25-hydroxycholesterol as a marker of sperm function

“…Oxysterols were determined by GC–MS using deuterium-labeled internal standards as described by Dzeletovic et al and Iuliano et al [18], [19]. In brief, for the oxysterols analysis was used 1 mL of semen and were added 10 µL BHT in ethanol (5 mg/mL), 50 µL EDTA (10 mg/mL) and 10 µL of ethanol containing deuterium labeled internal standards.…”