From Comments from Patrick Ward, MD, PhD, medical oncologist and co-director of research at OHC. Article by Maria Cohut, Medical News Today
November 8, 2018
A recent clinical trial could change the face of treatment for a very aggressive and stubborn form of breast cancer: triple-negative. Scientists found a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy boosts survival rates.
Triple-negative breast cancer is so called since its cells lack receptors for two hormones (estrogen and progesterone) and one protein (HER2). In the majority of cases, it quickly becomes resistant to chemotherapy and continues to spread through the body. According to existing research, triple-negative breast cancer makes up about 10–15 percent of diagnosed breast cancers.
“Triple-negative breast cancer is uncommon but is one of the most aggressive and deadly types of breast cancer,” said Patrick Ward, MD, PhD, medical oncologist and co-director of research at OHC. “It typically affects younger women, many with younger families. To say these results are a huge advancement would be an understatement.”
Recently, immunotherapy — a type of treatment that boosts’ the body’s defenses against disease — has been gaining ground as a potent cancer treatment. Now, for the first time ever, a clinical trial has demonstrated that immunotherapy, when delivered alongside chemotherapy, can boost survival and halt tumor growth in people with triple-negative breast cancer.
Researchers at Queen Mary University of London and St Bartholomew’s Hospital, both in London, United Kingdom, conducted the trial. Its success is reported in the New England Journal of Medicine and was also outlined at the European Society for Medical Oncology 2018 Congress, held in Munich, Germany.
“We have been desperately looking for better treatment options,” says study co-author Prof. Peter Schmid. “I’m thrilled that by using a combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy we are able to significantly extend lives compared to the standard treatment of chemotherapy alone.”
The team tested the effectiveness of a combined immunotherapy and chemotherapy treatment for triple-negative breast cancer. More specifically, they used Atezolizumab, a monoclonal antibody (immunotherapy drug), and the chemotherapeutic agent Nab-paclitaxel.
According to the normal guidelines, the scientists gave the participants Nab-paclitaxel on a weekly basis. To this, however, they added an Atezolizumab dose once every other week. In this approach, the immunotherapy drug boosts the responsiveness of the immune system, while the chemotherapy drug “marks” the surface of cancer cells, which then allows the immune system to find and attack them. They discovered that this powerful combination is able to extend a person’s survival by up to 10 months, reducing their risk of death or disease progression by up to 40 percent.
“This is remarkable. The team used chemotherapy to stop the cancer’s ‘protective shield’ and Atezolizumab to allow the immune system to get to it an attack it, and it’s working. It’s just remarkable,” Dr. Ward said.
To learn more about breast cancer, treatments, and clinical trials, contact OHC at 1-888-649-4800.
