Written by Fazil Hussein: A recent article in Clinical Cancer Research brings good news, more personalized cancer therapy, for breast cancer patients testing HER2-positive.

The researchers added a new way to personalize cancer therapy for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer. HER2 is a protein that can make breast cancer cells grow faster and more aggressively. About 15% to 20% of breast cancers are HER2-positive. This subtype of cancer can be treated more effectively with specific anti-HER2 drugs. However, chemotherapy is often the first step to try to eradicate the cancer completely.

 

What did the researchers add to this personalized cancer therapy?

The researchers wanted to find out which patients with HER2-positive breast cancer could be treated with only drugs that target HER2, without needing chemotherapy. They created a tool that can measure three factors in tumor samples. These factors are:

– HER2 ratio: how much HER2 gene and protein are in the cancer cells and how evenly they are distributed in the tumor. This is important because the drugs work best when all the cells have high levels of HER2.

– HER2-enriched subtype: whether the cancer cells have a specific pattern of genes that show they depend on HER2 for growth. This can indicate how sensitive the cancer is to the drugs.

– PIK3CA mutation: whether the cancer cells have a change in a gene called PIK3CA that can make them resistant to the drugs by using other pathways to grow.

The researchers analyzed tumor samples from two clinical trials of patients who received two drugs that target HER2: lapatinib and trastuzumab. They constructed the tool in one trial samples and validated it in samples from the other trial. They concluded that this multiparameter classifier can distinguish patients who are likely to respond well to HER2-targeted therapy alone from those who need additional chemotherapy.

 

Implications of the study

The study has important implications for the clinical management of HER2-positive breast cancer patients. The researchers plan to test their molecular classifier in a prospective clinical trial to confirm its accuracy and utility in selecting patients who can benefit from dual HER2-targeted therapy without chemotherapy.

This would allow a more personalized and less toxic treatment approach for this group of patients. Currently, many patients receive aggressive treatments that may not be necessary and that can harm their quality of life. By using a personalized treatment strategy, we can optimize the outcomes for patients while minimizing the adverse effects on their well-being.

 

 

See also:

Cancer Blood Tests Revolutionize Oncology

Precision Therapy of Cancer: A New Platform

 

 

 

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