Number of patients to be enrolled The study is an exploratory translational study. Thus, we do not know the number of patients expected to achieve a clinical or pathological complete response. Currently, on average 20 patients are referred to our Department for a diagnosis of locally advanced breast cancer on an annual basis; including patients with tumors measuring between 4 and 5 cm in diameter, we estimate the total number may be somewhere between 30 and 40 patients per year. From this cohort, we estimate an average number of 20 patients to be enrolled in the study on an annual basis. Our aim is to recruit 100 patients with a minimum of 60.