The Psychoneurologic Symptom Cluster and Its Association With Breast Cancer Genomic Instability.

Objectives: To phenotype the psychoneurologic (PN) symptom cluster in individuals with metastatic breast cancer and associate those phenotypes with individual characteristics and cancer genomic variables from circulating tumor DNA.

Sample & setting: This study included 201 individuals with metastatic breast cancer recruited in western Pennsylvania.

Methods & variables: A descriptive, cross-sectional design was used. Symptom data were collected via the MD Anderson Symptom Inventory, and cancer genomic data were collected via ultra-low-pass whole-genome sequencing of circulating tumor DNA from participant blood.

Results: Three distinct PN symptom phenotypes were described in a population with metastatic breast cancer: mild symptoms, moderate symptoms, and severe mood-related symptoms. Breast cancer TP53 deletion was significantly associated with membership in a moderate to severe symptoms phenotype (p = 0.013).

Implications for nursing: Specific cancer genomic changes associated with increased genomic instability may be predictive of PN symptoms. This finding may enable proactive treatment or reveal new therapeutic targets for symptom management.