Anti-HER-2 therapy following severe trastuzumab-induced cardiac toxicity.

The human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is overexpressed in 25%-30% of breast cancer patients. Anti-HER2 therapies have changed the aggressive course of HER2+ breast cancer. In spite of the therapeutic benefits, their cardiotoxicities are major concerns, especially when used concurrently with anthracyclines.

TITAN: phase III study of doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide followed by ixabepilone or paclitaxel in early-stage triple-negative breast cancer.

Purpose: Ixabepilone is a microtubule stabilizer with activity in taxane-refractory metastatic breast cancer and low susceptibility to taxane-resistance mechanisms including multidrug-resistant phenotypes and high β-III tubulin expression. Since these resistance mechanisms are common in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), ixabepilone may have particular advantages in this patient population. This study evaluated the substitution of ixabepilone for paclitaxel following doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide (AC) in the adjuvant treatment of early-stage TNBC.

Highlights of the 2015 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

This manuscript provides a comprehensive review and highlights of the 2015 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium by the leading breast cancer specialists and investigators in the field.

Phase II multicenter study of docetaxel and bevacizumab with or without trastuzumab as first-line treatment for patients with metastatic breast cancer.

Background: Adding bevacizumab to docetaxel or paclitaxel in the first-line improves the progression-free survival (PFS) of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients. Docetaxel has been studied with bevacizumab at the maximally tolerated dose of 100 mg/m(2). We investigated the effects of combining bevacizumab with docetaxel (75 mg/m(2)) with or without trastuzumab for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive (HER2(+)) and HER2-negative (HER2(-)) patients, respectively.

A randomized phase II study of paclitaxel and bevacizumab with and without gemcitabine as first-line treatment for metastatic breast cancer.

Background: The addition of bevacizumab to paclitaxel improved progression-free survival (PFS) of patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC). We examined the efficacy and safety of adding gemcitabine to paclitaxel/bevacizumab (PB).

Patients And Methods: In this multicenter, open-label, randomized phase II trial, women with locally advanced or MBC were randomly assigned to receive paclitaxel 90 mg/m(2) (days 1, 8, 15) and bevacizumab 10 mg/kg (days 1, 15) with or without gemcitabine 1500 mg/m(2) (days 1, 15) in 28-day cycles.

A phase II study of weekly nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel with or without trastuzumab in metastatic breast cancer.

Introduction: Weekly administration of nanoparticle albumin-bound (nab) paclitaxel as a first-line treatment for metastatic breast cancer (MBC) has not been fully investigated. The addition of trastuzumab, a monoclonal antibody against human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), is less understood. This phase II study evaluated the efficacy and safety of weekly nab paclitaxel in the first-line MBC setting.

A phase II trial of pemetrexed and gemcitabine as first line therapy for poor performance status and/or elderly patients with stage IIIB/IV non-small cell lung cancer.

Pemetrexed and gemcitabine are both active agents for the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC. We tested a novel biweekly combination of pemetrexed and gemcitabine for tolerability and efficacy in 45 elderly and/or poor performance status patients (44% female, mean age of 72.4 years) with measurable stage IIIB/IV NSCLC.