Breast Cancer

Acquired HER2 mutations cause endocrine resistance in some patients with ER+/HER2-negative breast cancer.

Recent advancements in the field of breast cancer are reshaping the treatment paradigm for subsets of patients with the disease, bringing new therapies and strategies into focus.

Sara A. Hurvitz, MD, director of the Breast Oncology Program at the University of California, Los Angeles, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses de-escalation in HER2-positive breast cancer.

The rate of resection of primary breast cancer in the setting of distant metastatic disease has fallen dramatically over the past decade, but results from recent studies may alter this trend.

Employing preclinical detection using bioimpedance spectroscopy, breast centers are reporting progression to clinical lymphedema in less than 10% of patients at high risk of developing the condition.

Andrew Seidman, MD, focuses on his view of the increasing role of nurse practitioners in the outpatient setting and hospitalists in the inpatient setting.

Whenever 3 agents joining the therapeutic armamentarium do so for similar indications with essentially identical mechanisms of action, it is reasonable to ask whether these agents have specific differences that might help decide which to use.

Neoadjuvant therapy can eliminate both invasive and in situ carcinoma in up to 50% of patients, particularly when their subtypes are triple-negative disease or HER2-positive cancers.

Elizabeth A. Mittendorf, MD, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Surgical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses the impact of pertuzumab (Perjeta) on the treatment landscape of HER2-positive breast cancer.

Abemaciclib (Verzenio) has quickly amassed several clinical indications for patients with metastatic breast cancer, and is the only CDK4/6 inhibitor approved as a single agent.

Patrick I. Borgen, MD, chairman of surgery, director of the Breast Cancer Program, Maimonides Medical Center, and chair of the Miami Breast Cancer Conference, discusses the evolution of breast cancer treatment in recent years. Borgen shared his insight in an interview during the meeting.

Endocrine therapy can achieve tumor reduction for patients with ER-positive breast cancer, possibly avoiding the need for chemotherapy or even surgery in some patients; however, deciding how long to continue this therapy can be tricky.

The latest revision of the staging manual for breast cancer from the American Joint Committee on Cancer is a quantum leap toward precision oncology, as it codifies advanced knowledge of the role of biologic factors in cancer, and oncologists should now be using it.

The PARP inhibitors have finally become available for patients with BRCA-mutant metastatic breast cancer, ushering in a potential new era for targeted therapies with studies currently ongoing in the adjuvant setting and exploring combinations.

The discovery of crosstalk between the HER2 and hormone receptor pathways has led to the promising treatment strategy of dual targeting regimens.

Several new agents have emerged in HER2-positive breast cancer with the potential to further alter the natural course of the disease.

Tari King, MD, FACS, chief of Breast Surgery, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham Women’s Cancer Center, discusses approaches to treating lymphedema in patients with breast cancer.

Mark E. Robson, MD, chief, Breast Medicine Service, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses an exploratory analysis of the OlympiAD trial for patients with HER2-negative breast cancer with a germline BRCA1/2 mutation.

Palbociclib (Ibrance) demonstrated significant efficacy in combination with letrozole (Femara) in the frontline setting of estrogen receptor-positive, HER2-negative, postmenopausal metastatic breast cancer.

Fabrice André, MD, professor, Department of Medical Oncology, Institut Gustave Roussy, discusses the remaining questions with immunotherapy agents as potential therapy for patients with triple-negative breast cancer. Andre expanded on this in an interview with OncLive during the 35th Annual Miami Breast Cancer Conference.

William J. Gradishar, MD, interim chief of hematology and oncology, Department of Medicine, Betsy Bramsen Professorship of Breast Oncology, professor of medicine (hematology and oncology), Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, discusses the utilization of genetic testing in breast cancer to identify actionable results for patients.

The progression-free survival benefit for ribociclib in pre- or perimenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative advanced or metastatic breast cancer was sustained across patient subgroups, according to findings from the phase III MONALEESA-7 trial.

Improvements in progression-free survival with olaparib (Lynparza) remained consistent regardless of baseline tumor burden for patients with HER2-negative breast cancer with a germline BRCA1/2 mutation.

Debu Tripathy, MD, professor and chairman, Department of Breast Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses the FDA approval of olaparib (Lynparza) for patients with BRCA-positive breast cancers and the impact it has had on clinical practice. Tripathy shared this insight in an interview during the 35th Annual Miami Breast Cancer Conference.

Claudine Isaacs, MD, professor, medical director, Fisher Center for Familial Cancer Research, co-director, Breast Cancer Program, Georgetown University/Lombardi Cancer Center, discusses antibody drug conjugates in the treatment of patients with triple-negative breast cancer.