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Elucidating the Determinants of Chemotherapy Response: A Single-Cell Transcriptomic Characterization of Chemosensitive and Resistant Tumors from Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Patients

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Abstract:
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) drives disproportionate mortality, yet only ~50% of patients achieve pathological complete response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and tumor-intrinsic determinants of resistance remain undefined. We performed single-cell single-cell transcriptomic profiling of grade 3 TNBC core-needle biopsies), comparing chemotherapy-sensitive (n=4) and chemotherapy-resistant (n=4) tumors. InferCNV confirmed malignant identity and revealed broad genomic alterations; differential expression and pathway enrichment identified distinct tumor-intrinsic states separating resistant from sensitive tumors, while spatial analysis localized resistant states within the tumor ecosystem. These findings establish a framework for stratifying TNBC by tumor-intrinsic molecular vulnerability rather than histopathologic subtype alone.

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Justin M. Kim, Marygrace C. Trousdell, Claire Gould, et al., "Elucidating the Determinants of Chemotherapy Response: A Single-Cell Transcriptomic Characterization of Chemosensitive and Resistant Tumors from Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Patients" (2026). Warren Alpert Medical School Academic Symposium. Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library. https://doi.org/10.26300/r4rt-7171

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  • Warren Alpert Medical School Academic Symposium

    The Warren Alpert Medical School Academic Symposium is an annual event at Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University that provides Year II medical students a venue to present their summer research in a poster format. Participation in the Symposium …
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