Peter Schmid, MD, PhD, of Queen Mary University of London, discusses phase II study findings on AZD5363 plus paclitaxel vs placebo plus paclitaxel as first-line therapy for metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (Abstract 1007).
Joseph A. Sparano, MD, of Montefiore Medical Center, discusses phase III study results on chemoendocrine treatment vs endocrine treatment alone in hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative, node-negative breast cancer and an intermediate prognosis 21-gene recurrence score (Abstract LBA1).
The federally funded, phase III TAILORx clinical trial showed that most women with hormone receptor (HR)–positive, HER2-negative, axillary node–negative early-stage breast cancer and a mid-range score on a 21-tumor gene expression assay (Oncotype DX® Breast Recurrence Score) do not...
Gabriel N. Hortobagyi, MD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses the 8th edition of the TNM staging system, which includes prognostic stage groups based on clinical and pathologic factors combined with grade and hormone and HER2 status.
In a phase III clinical trial, the investigational PI3K inhibitor taselisib combined with standard hormone therapy fulvestrant (Faslodex) halted the growth of advanced breast cancer growth by 2 months longer than hormone therapy alone. In addition, the novel combination decreased the chance of...
Early, ongoing screening of lymphatic function and immediate patient-administered therapies as needed are highly effective in improving outcomes for women at high risk for breast cancer–related lymphedema (BCRL). These were the findings of a new study presented at the American Society of ...
Modern, multimodality lumpectomy treatment significantly reduces the incidence of breast cancer recurrence at the original tumor site compared to historical protocols, according to a new study presented at the American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS) 19th Annual Meeting (Abstract...
Current restrictive genetic testing guidelines exclude many patients who harbor high-risk breast cancer mutations, according to two new studies presented at the American Society of Breast Surgeons (ASBrS) 19th Annual Meeting (Abstracts 402910, 404340). One study found that whether or not patients...
Women with breast cancer who underwent regular mammographic screening were diagnosed with earlier-stage disease and treated with significantly less aggressive therapies than those who delayed or never underwent screening, according to new research presented at the American Society of Breast...
Researchers have found that women with advanced triple-negative breast cancer with a BRCA mutation were twice as likely to benefit from carboplatin as docetaxel—the current standard of care for these patients. These findings were published by Tutt et al in Nature Medicine. The trial is set...
A new method for early, more accurate breast cancer screening has been developed by researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Soroka University Medical Center using commercially available technology. Their findings were published by Herman-Saffar et al in Computers in Biology and...
Research from the Yale School of Public Health has found that the majority of published papers analyzing the cost-effectiveness of a widely used test for breast cancer used a study design that can increase bias. These findings were published by Wang et al in the Journal of Clinical Oncology....
On April 19, Polyphor announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Fast Track designation for its novel immuno-oncology candidate balixafortide (POL6326) in combination with eribulin (Halaven) for the treatment of patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who...
Extensive surgery involving mastectomy and removal of several lymph nodes may be safely avoided for more women with some types of breast cancer if they receive targeted drugs before surgery, according to research presented at the 11th European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-11) (Abstract 19). The...
The average number of moderate or marked side effects reported by patients with breast cancer is lower if they are treated with radiotherapy to part of the breast or a reduced dose to the whole breast, rather than with standard whole breast radiotherapy (WBRT), according to new findings presented...
Women with small, low-grade, well-defined breast tumors and a genetic profile that shows they are at low risk of the cancer metastasizing have only a 1.4% risk of locoregional recurrence within 5 years, according to new results from a large randomized trial of nearly 7,000 patients. This low risk...
Sentinel lymph node biopsies may be safely avoided for some women, according to research presented at the 11th European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-11). Two new studies show that women with either triple-negative or HER2-positive types of breast cancer, whose cancers respond well to chemotherapy ...
Healthy women who carry a breast cancer–causing mutation in the BRCA1 gene not only reduce their risk of developing the disease but also their chances of dying from it if they have both breasts removed, according to new research presented at the 11th European Breast Cancer Conference...
Patients with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) are less likely to have recurrent disease if they are postmenopausal or if their tumor is estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, according to research presented at the 11th European Breast Cancer Conference (EBCC-11) (Abstract 215). DCIS accounts for about...
The risk of a second breast cancer in patients with high-risk BRCA gene mutations can be more precisely predicted by testing for several other genetic variants, each of which are known to have a small impact on breast cancer risk, according to new research presented at the 11th European Breast...
Anthony D. Elias, MD, of the University of Colorado Cancer Center, reviews promising experimental treatments, as well as PARP inhibitor therapy in TNBC, including the implications of newly approved olaparib for gBRCA-mutant breast cancer.
William J. Gradishar, MD, of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, discusses recent evidence on the efficacy, safety, and utility of HER2-targeted treatments in the adjuvant setting for early-stage and advanced breast cancers.
On March 15, Genomic Health, Inc, was informed by the ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group that the TAILORx trial, has achieved sufficient information to render a conclusion regarding the efficacy of chemotherapy in patients with early-stage breast cancer who have Oncotype DX recurrence score...
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) has issued a new clinical guideline for the use of whole-breast radiation therapy for breast cancer that expands the population of patients recommended to receive hypofractionated treatment. The guideline was published by Smith et al in...
Mutations in HER2 were found to confer resistance to hormone therapy in some estrogen receptor (ER)-positive metastatic breast cancer cases, and resistance could be reversed by dual treatment with the hormone therapy fulvestrant (Faslodex) and the HER2 kinase inhibitor neratinib (Nerlynx),...
The current guidelines for mammographic breast cancer screening, which are based on data from primarily white populations, may lead to delayed diagnosis in nonwhite women, according to a report published by Stapleton et al in JAMA Surgery. A team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)...
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the Personal Genome Service Genetic Health Risk (GHR) Report for BRCA1/BRCA2 (Selected Variants). It is the first direct-to-consumer (DTC) test to report on three specific BRCA1/BRCA2 breast cancer gene mutations that are most common in...
A new study reveals that many patients with breast cancer have misconceptions and fears about radiation therapy, but their actual experiences with this treatment modality are better than they expected. In the study published by Shaverdian et al in Cancer, most patients agreed that their initial...
On February 26, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved abemaciclib (Verzenio) in combination with an aromatase inhibitor as initial endocrine-based therapy for postmenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative advanced...
A family history of breast cancer continues to significantly increase chances of developing invasive breast tumors in women aged 65 years and older, according to research published by Braithwaite et al in JAMA Internal Medicine. The findings could impact mammography screening decisions later in...
Electra D. Paskett, PhD, of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses study findings on whether exercise helps women with breast cancer regain arm mobility after lymph node surgery (Abstract 123).
An international group of clinicians and scientists representing the Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) published the first-ever clinical practice guidelines for using CYP2D6 genotype to guide tamoxifen therapy. Their research was published by Goetz et al in Clinical...
New findings from a clinical trial of women with breast cancer suggest that guided exercise with a physical therapist after lymph node dissection helps women regain their range of arm motion more quickly. These findings will be presented by Paskett et al at the upcoming 2018 Cancer Survivorship...
A follow-up study to a randomized clinical trial reveals that exercising during adjuvant chemotherapy helps people engage in more physical activity years later. Four years later, people with breast or colon cancer who had participated in an 18-week exercise program while receiving chemotherapy...
Patients with breast cancer may be at an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, including heart failure, and may benefit from a treatment approach that weighs the benefits of specific therapies against potential damage to the heart, according to a new scientific statement from the American...
In an analysis of more than 120,000 women diagnosed with and treated for early-stage breast cancer, researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center determined the rate of additional breast biopsies needed for these patients during their follow-up care. The findings, reported by...
Among postmenopausal women with normal body mass index (BMI), those with higher body fat levels had an increased risk for invasive breast cancer, according to data presented at an American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Special Conference titled Obesity and Cancer: Mechanisms...
Researchers at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC) and GeneDx, a genetic testing company, have identified two new genetic mutations associated with breast cancer: MSH6 and PMS2. The researchers’ study—published by Roberts et al in Genetics in Medicine—suggests that...
Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center researchers developed a single blood test that screens for eight common cancer types and also helps identify the location of the cancer. The test, called CancerSEEK, is a unique noninvasive, multianalyte test that simultaneously evaluates levels of eight cancer...
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered that the risk of death from breast cancer is twice as high for patients with high heterogeneity of the estrogen receptor within the same tumor, compared to patients with low heterogeneity. The study, published by Lindström et al in ...
Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have found that two estrogen-mimicking compounds found in many foods appear to potently reverse the effects of palbociclib/letrozole, a popular drug combination for treating breast cancer. The study, published by Warth et al in Cell Chemical...
Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted regular approval to olaparib (Lynparza), a poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitor, for the treatment of patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline BRCA-mutated, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who have been...
The most commonly used gene expression profile test used to help predict breast cancer recurrence may not be as cost-effective as once thought, say a team of researchers led by scientists from Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. Their study, published by Chandler et al in the Journal...
Increasing use of a potentially life-saving treatment for metastatic cancer is leaving too many vulnerable patients behind, according to a new study from Yale Cancer Center/Smilow Cancer Hospital published by Kann et al in JNCCN – Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. The...
A new genetic-based model may explain how ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) progresses to a more invasive form of cancer, say researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The study provides new insight into how DCIS leads to invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) and provides a clearer...
On January 3, ribociclib (Kisqali) received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Breakthrough Therapy designation for initial endocrine-based treatment of pre- or perimenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative advanced or metastatic breast cancer in combination with...
On December 22, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared a new noninvasive stereotactic radiotherapy system intended for use in treating cancer in breast tissue. “With [this] clearance, patients will have access to a treatment option that provides greater accuracy in delivering...
On December 20, 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted regular approval to pertuzumab (Perjeta) for use in combination with trastuzumab (Herceptin) and chemotherapy as adjuvant treatment of patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer at high risk of recurrence. APHINITY...
Eric S. Winer, MD, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, addresses the much-discussed controversy over whether all women diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer should undergo next-generation sequencing.
Sibylle Loibl, MD, PhD, of the German Breast Group, discusses a study evaluating palbociclib plus endocrine treatment vs a chemotherapy-based treatment strategy in patients with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer (Abstract OT3-05-04).