Dr. Perez on the Antibody-Drug Conjugate T-DM1
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Edith A. Perez, MD, from the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, discusses the antibody-drug conjugate T-DM1 that is being investigated as a treatment for patients with HER2-positive, unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer.
Edith A. Perez, MD, deputy director, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Florida, director, Breast Program, Serene M. and Frances C. Durling Professor of Medicine, Mayo Medical School, discusses the antibody-drug conjugate T-DM1 (trastuzumab emtansine) that is being investigated as a treatment for patients with HER2-positive, unresectable, locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer.
Perez believes T-DM1 is a marvelous drug and is glad that she was able to be involved in its development process. She notes that overall survival data from the phase III EMILIA trial showed a significant advantage for T-DM1 compared to the lapatinib plus capecitabine. In the trial, overall survival was 30.9 months for T-DM1 compared to 25.1 months. These results, Perez states, are practice changing and were the basis for FDA approval in February 2013 (Find out more).
Overall, Perez feels that T-DM1 is a very important agent that further stresses the utility of antibody-drug conjugates. The goal of these agents, Perez states, is to combine a targeted therapy with chemotherapy in order to minimize toxicity while increasing efficacy, which is accomplished with T-DM1.
