Dr. Aithal on the HERceptin Adjuvant (HERA) Trial

Sramila Aithal, MD, hematologist-oncologist and medical oncologist, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Eastern Regional Medical Center, discusses the HERceptin Adjuvant (HERA) trial that examined adjuvant therapy with trastuzumab (Herceptin) for women with HER2-positive invasive early breast cancer.

The HERA trial evenly randomized 5102 patients to receive either 1 or 2 years of trastuzumab or observation alone, in the adjuvant setting. Leading into the trial, 1 year of adjuvant trastuzumab was considered the standard of care.

At a median follow-up of 8 years, patients receiving 1 year of trastuzumab demonstrated a significant improvement in progression-free and overall survival. Additionally, no added benefits were observed for continuing therapy for 2 years. Moreover, higher primary cardiac toxicity was observed in those receiving 2 years of therapy.

Overall, the HERA trial confirms that 1-year of adjuvant trastuzumab should remain the standard of care for early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer, adds Aithal.