Dr. Valdes-Albini on the FDA Approval of Adjuvant Pertuzumab in HER2+ Breast Cancer

Frances Valdes-Albini, MD, assistant professor of clinical medicine, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami Health System, discusses the FDA approval of adjuvant pertuzumab (Perjeta) in patients with HER2-positive breast cancer.

The data on adjuvant pertuzumab were presented at the 2018 ASCO Annual Meeting. The benefit seemed to be restricted to patients with node-positive disease. Therefore, pertuzumab in combination with trastuzumab (Herceptin) and chemotherapy should be considered as a treatment for patients with node-positive disease and perhaps in patients with hormone receptor-negative disease, states Valdes-Albini.

It will be interesting to see how this plays a role in patients who have received neoadjuvant therapy, says Valdes-Albini. A lot of physicians are offering dual blockade in the neoadjuvant setting, but the study doesn’t address the impact of adjuvant dual blockade in patients who have received neoadjuvant treatment.