Dr. Yee on Neoadjuvant Pertuzumab in HER2-Positive Breast Cancer

Douglas Yee, MD, professor of medicine and pharmacology, Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation, Department of Medicine, medical oncologist, University of Minnesota, discusses the research that led to the FDA approval of neoadjuvant pertuzumab as part of a combination regimen for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer.

The NeoSphere trial was the major study that led to this approval, Yee says. The NeoSphere trial compared the efficacy of the doublets trastuzumab/docetaxel, pertuzumab/docetaxel, and pertuzumab/trastuzumab, as well as the triplet pertuzumab/trastuzumab/docetaxel.

In this study, the pathologic complete response rate was statistically increased. Data showed that the triplet of pertuzumab, trastuzumab and docetaxel demonstrated higher efficacy over the other regimens.

Moreover, the ongoing AFFINITY trial, which is examining chemotherapy and trastuzumab with or without pertuzumab in the adjuvant setting, may impact the use of pertuzumab as an adjuvant treatment for HER2-positive breast cancer.