Breast Cancer

Treatment with the PI3K inhibitor buparlisib plus fulvestrant showed a 1.9-month extension in progression-free survival compared with fulvestrant alone in women with endocrine-resistant HR-positive/HER2-negative advanced breast cancer.

The enzyme APOBEC3B has been associated with resistance to treatment with tamoxifen in retrospective studies and xenograft models of ER-positive breast cancer.

Estrogen receptor mutations are prevalent and associated with poorer survival in patients with pretreated HR+/HER2- metastatic breast cancer.

Achieving a pCR with standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy plus carboplatin and/or bevacizumab was associated with a survival improvement in patients with triple-negative breast cancer.

The risk of complications from mastectomy plus reconstruction was increased by two-fold compared with lumpectomy plus whole breast irradiation, after adjustment for other treatment differences.

Reuben S. Harris, PhD, investigator Howard Hughes Medical Institute and professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and Biophysics at the University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences, explains the role APOBEC3B may play in tamoxifen resistance in ER-positive breast cancer.

Frontline treatment with the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab combined with nab-paclitaxel showed a confirmed objective response rate of 66.7% in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer.

Adding carboplatin to neoadjuvant chemotherapy improves disease-free survival significantly in women with triple-negative breast cancer but not HER2-positive breast cancer.

The FDA has granted a priority review to a supplemental new drug application for palbociclib (Ibrance) for use in combination with fulvestrant in pretreated patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer.

Pat Whitworth, MD, medical oncologist at the Nashville Breast Center, discusses the prospective neo-adjuvant NBRST study, which looked at BluePrint functional subtyping versus conventional immunohistochemistry (IHC) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in breast tumors.

Prophylactic administration of standard heart failure medications helped preserve left ventricular ejection fraction in patients treated with trastuzumab for HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer.

Matthew Goetz, MD, medical oncologist, professor of Oncology, associate professor of Pharmacology, andprofessor of Pharmacology at Mayo Clinic, discusses a phase III study looking at capecitabine (Xeloda) in patients with residual breast cancer following neoadjuvant chemotherapy and surgery.

Treatment with the PD-L1 inhibitor avelumab demonstrated promising overall response rates for patients with PD-L1–positive metastatic breast cancer, particularly for those with triple-negative disease.

Premenopausal women with high-risk breast cancer of the luminal A subtype derive no benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy.

A follow-up analysis of the benefits of adding denosumab to aromatase inhibitor therapy has found that the agent not only helps to prevent fractures, it reduces the risk of recurrence and death in postmenopausal women with HR-positive breast cancer.

Adding capecitabine to adjuvant therapy reduced the risk of disease recurrence by 30% and prolonged survival by 40% for patients with residual breast cancer following neoadjuvant chemotherapy and surgery.

Active research and advancements in the field focuses on lessening the burden of radiation treatment while still maintaining acceptable cosmetic outcomes for patients with breast cancer.

Clifford Hudis, MD, discusses the evolving adjuvant therapy options in HER2-positive breast cancer.

Nimmi Kapoor, MD, Breast and Thyroid Surgical Oncologist at Breastlink, discusses the benefits and safety of multigene panel testing in patients at risk for hereditary breast cancer.

Robert R. Kuske, MD, radiation oncologist, Arizona Breast Cancer Specialists, discusses the analysis of the Pooled Registry of Multicatheter Interstitial Sites Experience, which examined the safety of accelerated partial breast irradiation via multicatheter interstitial brachytherapy.

As genetic testing becomes increasingly available, there will be a growing gap between the wide availability of testing and the relative importance of results to treatment decisions.

Patrick I. Borgen, MD, chair, Department of Surgery, head, Brooklyn Cancer Center, Maimonides Medical Center, compares the efficacy of surgical versus medical treatment of patients with breast cancer.

Frank A. Vicini, MD, radiation oncologist, 21st Century Oncology of Michigan, discusses a European study that examined the efficacy of accelerated partial breast irradiation versus conventional whole breast irradiation in patients with low-risk breast cancer.

Rates of overall survival, disease-free survival, and local control were found to be comparable in select patients with early-stage breast cancer who underwent accelerated partial breast irradiation using multicatheter brachytherapy versus conventional whole breast irradiation.

The American Cancer Society now recommends that women at an average risk of breast cancer should wait to undergo annual screening mammography until they reach the age of 45.