According to updated results presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2014 Congress in Madrid, Spain, patients with metastatic human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer treated with pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and chemotherapy, lived about 16 months longer than those treated with trastuzumab and chemotherapy.
The results come from the phase 3 CLEOPATRA study in which researchers enrolled 808 treatment-naive patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. Patients received trastuzumab and docetaxel plus either pertuzumab or placebo.
The researchers found that women treated with the pertuzumab combination lived 15.7 months longer than those treated with the placebo combination (56.5 versus 40.8 months). The researchers say that the improvement in survival with pertuzumab is unprecedented among studies involving metastatic breast cancer. The researchers suggest that the pertuzumab combination should be considered for standard of care for these patients.
Pertuzumab (Perjeta) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2012 for the treatment of patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer who have not received prior anti-HER2 therapy or chemotherapy for metastatic disease in combination with trastuzumab and docetaxel.
HER2-positive breast cancer treated with pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and chemo, lived longer.
Patients with HER2-positive breast cancer that has spread to other parts of their body live around 16 months longer if treated with a combination of pertuzumab, trastuzumab and chemotherapy compared to those treated with trastuzumab and chemotherapy alone, updated results from the CLEOPATRA study reveal.
CLEOPATRA was a pivotal phase III study where researchers evaluated the safety and efficacy of pertuzumab, trastuzumb and chemotherapy in 808 patients with previously untreated HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer has historically been one of the most aggressive forms of the disease.
From News Medical
