Several large randomised trials completed in the mid-2000s produced overwhelming evidence that the anti-HER2 monoclonal antibody trastuzumab, administered either concomitantly or sequentially with adjuvant chemotherapy for 12 months, increases the cure rate for women with HER2-positive operable breast cancer.1 One surprising aspect of this success story is that the choice of 12-month treatment duration was mostly as a result of a best guess, rather than on the basis of pre-existing evidence. Consequently, the optimum duration of treatment with adjuvant trastuzumab has been, and remains, unclear. In patients with metastatic disease, withholding trastuzumab in a responding patient almost always leads to disease progression. This observation would support administering trastuzumab for a longer period. Conversely, in women with operable breast cancer, two small studies suggested that when trastuzumab is administered concomitantly with chemotherapy for between 9 weeks and 6 months, the reduction in the risk of relapse is similar to longer treatment regimens.1 A shorter period of trastuzumab treatment would be an attractive option for several reasons, including reduced toxicity, inconvenience to patients, and costs. ..................................

Duration of trastuzumab for HER2-positive breast cancer.

AGLIETTA, Massimo
2013-01-01

Abstract

Several large randomised trials completed in the mid-2000s produced overwhelming evidence that the anti-HER2 monoclonal antibody trastuzumab, administered either concomitantly or sequentially with adjuvant chemotherapy for 12 months, increases the cure rate for women with HER2-positive operable breast cancer.1 One surprising aspect of this success story is that the choice of 12-month treatment duration was mostly as a result of a best guess, rather than on the basis of pre-existing evidence. Consequently, the optimum duration of treatment with adjuvant trastuzumab has been, and remains, unclear. In patients with metastatic disease, withholding trastuzumab in a responding patient almost always leads to disease progression. This observation would support administering trastuzumab for a longer period. Conversely, in women with operable breast cancer, two small studies suggested that when trastuzumab is administered concomitantly with chemotherapy for between 9 weeks and 6 months, the reduction in the risk of relapse is similar to longer treatment regimens.1 A shorter period of trastuzumab treatment would be an attractive option for several reasons, including reduced toxicity, inconvenience to patients, and costs. ..................................
2013
Jul;14
8
678
679
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(13)70273-0
Trastuzumab; HER2-positive
Montemurro F;Aglietta M
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2318/135960
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