Dr. Hamilton on Recent Advances in HER2+ Breast Cancer

Erika P. Hamilton, MD, director of the Breast Cancer and Gynecologic Cancer Research Program and principal investigator at the Sarah Cannon Research Institute, discusses the roles of fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan-nxki (Enhertu) and tucatinib (Tukysa) in HER2-positive breast cancer.

 In recent years, trastuzumab deruxtecan and tucatinib have garnered significant interest in the HER2-positive breast cancer space, says Hamilton. 

Trastuzumab deruxtecan is an antibody​-drug conjugate that has distinct characteristics from ado-trastuzumab emtansine (Kadcyla; T-DM1)​, explains Hamilton. 

Conversely, tucatinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, ​Hamilton says. Unlike neratinib (Nerlynx) and lapatinib (Tykerb), tucatinib selectively inhibits the growth of HER2-expressing tumor proteins ​and does not block HER1 or EGFR. 

Ultimately, tucatinib is associated with less rash ​and diarrhea ​compared with neratinib and lapatinib. Moreover, tucatinib has demonstrated impressive activity in treating patients with brain metastases, Hamilton concludes.