Dr. Jahanzeb on the Benefit of Pertuzumab Plus Trastuzumab in HER2+ Breast Cancer

Mohammad Jahanzeb, MD, professor of Clinical Medicine, Hematology/Oncology, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, discusses the benefit of pertuzumab (Perjeta) plus trastuzumab (Herceptin) for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer.

The phase III APHINITY study showed that adjuvant treatment with pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and chemotherapy demonstrated a 3-year invasive disease-free survival rate of 94.1% versus 93.2% for those who received trastuzumab plus chemotherapy and placebo. These findings led to the FDA approval of pertuzumab in combination with trastuzumab and chemotherapy as an adjuvant treatment for patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer at high risk for recurrence.

Jahanzeb says that in looking at the details of the data, the benefit was modest. Benefit was mainly seen for patients who were high-risk with many positive nodes. Jahanzeb adds that there is a high cost in giving pertuzumab for a whole year, rather than the 6 doses that were originally approved in the neoadjuvant setting. Physicians should take these factors under consideration, he adds.