BREAST CANCER

Howard A. “Skip” Burris III, MD, FACP, FASCO, has been elected as president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) for the 2019-2020 term, which will begin in June 2019.

Hope S. Rugo, MD, a medical oncologist and Director of the Breast Oncology Clinical Trials Program at University of California San Francisco Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses 5-year follow-up data from the CALGB 40502//NCCTG N063H study, which was a randomized phase III trial of weekly paclitaxel (Abraxane) compared with nab-paclitaxel or ixabepilone (Ixempra) with bevacizumab (Avastin) as first-line chemotherapy for locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer.

According to data from a randomized phase III trial presented at the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, a mix of traditional and customized acupuncture techniques were effective in reducing pain and stiffness associated with aromatase inhibitor therapy in women with early-stage breast cancer.

Christian Jackisch, MD, PhD, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Head of the Department of Obsterics and Gynaecology, Sana Klinikum Offenbach in Germany, discusses results of the GeparSepto study, as well as how a higher pathologic complete response (pCR) rate is achieved with nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane) in breast cancer.

According to findings presented at the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, no significant efficacy was seen in a trial to determine the value of trastuzumab plus standard adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with low levels of HER2 protein.

Based on results of the phase III MONALEESA-7 trial, ribociclib (Kisqali) has been granted a breakthrough therapy designation by the FDA for use in combination with tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor as frontline treatment for pre- or perimenopausal women with hormone receptor–positive, HER2-negative advanced or metastatic breast cancer.

Based on findings from a 17-patient study, a novel breast-specific stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) device known as GammaPod has been approved by the FDA as a treatment for patients with early breast cancer.<br /> <br /> &nbsp;

Based on findings from the APHINITY trial, pertuzumab (Perjeta) has been approved by the FDA&nbsp;in combination with trastuzumab (Herceptin) and chemotherapy for the adjuvant treatment of&nbsp;patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer at high risk for recurrence.

Denise A. Yardley, MD,&nbsp;discusses the promise of CDK4&amp;6 inhibitors in estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer, as well as the potential with immunotherapy agents.&nbsp;

Richard S. Finn, MD,&nbsp;covers the evolution of CDK4&amp;6 inhibition in the field of breast cancer and appropriately selecting patients for this type of therapy.

Prospects for patients with breast cancer have improved with the use of CDK4&amp;6 inhibitors, including palbociclib, ribociclib, and abemaciclib; however, the effects of these inhibitors in many subsets of patients have not been investigated.

The development of CDK4&amp;6 inhibitors has provided promising data regarding this new therapeutic option for patients with cancer, particularly for patients with breast cancer. Currently, there are 3 FDA-approved CDK4&amp;6 inhibitors for the treatment of patients with breast cancer.

The second most common cancer worldwide, breast cancer remains a significant global burden despite decreased incidence in Western countries.&nbsp;Breast cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in the United States, with more than 40,000 estimated deaths in 2017.

According to phase II findings from the MEDIOLA trial presented at the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium,&nbsp;the combination of olaparib and durvalumab demonstrated a disease control rate of 80% for pretreated patients with germline <em>BRCA-</em>mutated, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer, according to phase II findings from the MEDIOLA trial.

According to early results from a pilot trial presented in a poster at the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium,&nbsp;the combination of abemaciclib and pembrolizumab showed preliminary signs of activity without additive toxicity for patients with pretreated HR-positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer.

Denise Yardley, MD, Senior Investigator, Sarah Cannon Research Institute, discusses the role of enzalutamide in hormone-receptor positive (HR+) advanced breast cancer.

Promising clinical trial results have been seen with the exploration of new and existing treatment approaches for patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) on several fronts, including chemotherapy,&nbsp;immunotherapy, novel antibodies, and agents targeting the PI3K/mTOR/AKT pathway, according to David W. Miles,&nbsp;MB BS, BSc, MD. During a presentation at the <em>1st Annual </em>Paris Breast Cancer Conference hosted by the Physicians Education Resource&reg;, LLC, Miles, a consultant medical oncologist at West Hertfordshire Hospitals in England, provided his perspective on potential new treatment options for patients with TNBC.

Eli Lilly and Company has announced that Kimberly L. Blackwell, MD, a pioneer in breast cancer research, will serve as its vice president of early phase development and immuno-oncology. She will begin her new role on March 12, 2018.<br /> &nbsp;

Lori Goldstein, MD, FASCO, is among 27 breast oncologists across the country to be recognized by <em>Forbes&rsquo; </em>&ldquo;Physician Honor Role&rdquo;<em> </em>as an extraordinary physician in the field of oncology.

Treatment with&nbsp;ladiratuzumab vedotin demonstrated an estimated median progression-free survival (PFS) of 11.6 weeks for patients with heavily pretreated metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) treated&nbsp; with the recommended phase II dose of the antibody&ndash;drug conjugate, according to results of a phase I study presented during the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.&nbsp;

Hope S. Rugo, MD, professor of medicine and director of the Breast Oncology Clinical Trials Program at the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses the 5-year follow-up of the CALGB 40502 study for patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).

Treatment discontinuation due to toxicity was less frequent with olaparib (Lynparza) monotherapy compared with chemotherapy in patients with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer and a germline <em>BRCA</em> mutation in the phase III OlympiAD study.

In findings from the phase III GeparSepto trial presented during the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, long-term disease-free survival rates were improved with neoadjuvant nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane) compared with standard paclitaxel in patients with high-risk early breast cancer.

Survival rates improved with nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane) therapy compared with paclitaxel in patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) more than in other patient subsets, according to findings from a post-hoc analysis from the CALGB 40502/NCCTG N063H clinical trial.&nbsp;

Results of a&nbsp;prospective clinical trial demonstrated that the detection of positive circulating tumor cells in the blood 5 years after hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer diagnosis was&nbsp;associated with an increased risk for late recurrence.