BREAST CANCER

General Cancer

Breast Cancer

In patients with metastatic or unresectable locally advanced triple-negative breast cancer, frontline treatment with atezolizumab (Tecentriq) plus nab-paclitaxel (Abraxane) significantly reduced the risk of disease progression or death compared with nab-paclitaxel, according to topline results from the phase III IMpassion130 study. 

Overall survival was not improved with the combination of palbociclib and fulvestrant compared with fulvestrant and placebo in the phase III PALOMA-3 trial for patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who received prior endocrine therapy, according to Pfizer, the developer of the CDK4/6 inhibitor.

The Hutchinson Institute for Cancer Outcomes Research released the first Community Care Cancer in Washington State: Quality and Cost Report to provide transparency for patients and health providers, establishing a more value-based care model.

Multiple pivotal studies have led to CDK4/6 inhibitors such as ribociclib, abemaciclib, and palbociclib becoming the standard of care for women with metastatic ER-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer. Speaking at the 11th European Breast Cancer Conference in Barcelona, Spain, Nicholas C. Turner, MD, PhD, a consultant medical oncologist with The Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Trust, explained how tumors resist treatment with CDK4/6 inhibitors and how that resistance can be overcome.

Promising antitumor activity was seen in patients with&nbsp;heavily pretreated HER2-positive breast cancer with or without brain metastases with the use of tucatinib in combination with capecitabine, trastuzumab, or both agents, according to phase Ib findings published in <em>The Lancet Oncology</em>.

In a presentation during a controversy session at the 11th European Breast Cancer Conference, Angelo Di Leo, MD, PhD, explained where genomic signatures have shown the most benefit and potential ways forward to make recurrence scores a truly beneficial marker for clinicians to use.