Breast Cancer

The addition of pembrolizumab to chemotherapy resulted in a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in overall survival vs chemotherapy alone in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer whose tumors had a PD-L1 expression of a combined positive score of 10 or higher, meeting the primary end point of the phase 3 KEYNOTE-355 trial.

Options available to treat patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer following frontline therapy with T-DM1.

The FDA has approved pembrolizumab for the treatment of patients with high-risk, early-stage triple-negative breast cancer in combination with chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment and then continued as a single agent as adjuvant treatment after surgery.

Variables that breast oncologists need to consider when selecting an appropriate systemic treatment approach for a patient with HER2-positive breast cancer.

William Gradishar, MD, discusses factors to consider when determining the optimal treatment of patients with HER2-positive breast cancer.

Roche Registration GmbH has withdrawn its application to extend the use of atezolizumab to the treatment of patients with early or locally advanced triple-negative breast cancer in Europe.

Lisa A. Carey, MD, FASCO, discusses the phase 3 monarchE trial in hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative breast cancer.

Completion of treatment options such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation within 38 weeks from a diagnosis with breast cancer was associated with improved survival in this population.

Mark E. Sherman, MD, discusses research efforts evaluating immune responses and risk of TNBC and implications for higher rates of disease among African American women.

William Gradishar, MD, discusses the significance of drug development in HER2-positive breast cancer.

Andrew D. Seidman, MD; Aditya Bardia, MD, MPH; Dejan Juric, MD; Nicholas McAndrew, MD, MSCE; and Hope S. Rugo, MD, review the optimal management of adverse events associated with alpelisib in HR+ metastatic breast cancer.

Breast cancer experts comment on whether there is a benefit to switching to or continuing on CDK4/6 inhibitors with disease progression for HR+ metastatic breast cancer and discuss the use of tamoxifen for third-line endocrine therapy.

Ricardo Costa, MD, MSc, discusses ongoing research efforts in triple-negative breast cancer.

The CCR5 antagonist leronlimab plus carboplatin was shown to result in a 72% decrease in cancer-associated macrophage-like cells, which was linked with an approximate 450% increase in overall survival in 30 patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer.

Breast oncologists discuss the pros and cons of treating patients with HER2-postive breast cancer with the fixed-dose subcutaneous formulation of pertuzumab plus trastuzumab compared with IV chemotherapy.

Best practices for preventing and managing treatment-related adverse events associated with systemic therapies used to treat HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer.

The future of therapeutic vaccines in breast cancer will be dependent on their use in combination with standard anticancer drugs, checkpoint antagonists, and distinct checkpoint inhibitors, Leisha A. Emens, MD, PhD.

Sara M. Tolaney, MD, MPH, discusses tailoring HER2-directed therapies in the treatment of patients with breast cancer. 

The FDA has granted a fast track designation to trilaciclib for use in combination with chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer

Selective estrogen receptor degraders are becoming increasingly important in the treatment of ER-positive metastatic breast cancer.

The highly differentiated mechanism of action of plinabulin, an investigational, first-in-class, selective immunomodulating microtubule binding agent, has positioned the drug as a potential preventive treatment for chemotherapy-induced neutropenia, as well as an anticancer agent in non–small cell lung cancer.

Chemoimmunotherapy combinations have transformed the treatment landscape for patients with triple-negative breast cancer, but balancing potential efficacy with the risk of toxicity with these regimens is critical in both the metastatic and early-stage settings.

By adapting adjuvant therapy based on responses to preoperative therapy, investigators may be able to change long term outcomes for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer, creating a paradigm shift in the space.

Kevin Kalinsky, MD, MS, discusses treatment options beyond chemotherapy in patients with high-risk breast cancer.

Neoadjuvant pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy followed by adjuvant single-agent pembrolizumab was found to significantly improve event-free survival over neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by adjuvant placebo in patients with high-risk, early-stage triple-negative breast cancer.