
Combination regimens that pair nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane) with PD-L1 checkpoint blockade immunotherapy agents are emerging as a robust area of investigation in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), bolstered by clinical trial results that establish the chemotherapeutic agent as an effective partner for other therapies.

“It is very attractive in the triple-negative population because it partners very well with immunotherapy,” Yardley said. “Because it does not require steroid premedication, which may mitigate some of the benefits of immune therapy, it is going in that direction, too.”
The tnAcity study, which was initiated in 2013, was originally designed to advance the superior of the 2 nab-paclitaxel doublets into a 550-patient phase III study comparing the doublet with gemcitabine/carboplatin. However, the introduction of effective immunotherapies since the study was designed caused the investigators to reconsider a chemotherapeutic approach in favor of combination strategies with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors.
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