Longer trastuzumab duration ( hera : 2 years vs. 1 year ) showed no improvement in dfs or os and a higher rate of cardiac events .
In the neoadjuvant setting ( neoaltto , GeparQuinto , Neosphere ) , trastuzumab alone or in combination with another anti-her2 agent ( lapatinib , pertuzumab ) was compared with either lapatinib or pertuzumab alone and showed superior or equivalent rates of pathologic complete response .
In the adjuvant setting , lapatinib alone or in combination with trastuzumab , compared with trastuzumab alone ( altto ) or with placebo ( teach ) , was not superior in dfs .
BACKGROUND This systematic review addresses the question " What is the optimal targeted therapy for female patients with early-stage human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (her2)-positive breast cancer ? "
Fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide (FEC-75) followed by paclitaxel plus trastuzumab versus paclitaxel plus trastuzumab followed by FEC-75 plus trastuzumab as neoadjuvant treatment for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer (Z1041): a randomised, controlled, phase 3 trial.
BACKGROUND Neoadjuvant chemotherapy with trastuzumab for patients with HER2-positive breast cancer can produce a pathological complete response in the breast in 30 - 65 % of patients . We investigated the effect of the timing of trastuzumab administration with anthracycline and taxane neoadjuvant chemotherapy . METHODS This r and omised trial was done at 36 centres in the USA and Puerto Rico . Women with operable HER2-positive invasive breast cancer were r and omly assigned ( 1:1 ) with a biased coin minimisation algorithm , stratified for age , tumour size , and hormone receptor status . Neither patients nor investigators ( except for a cardiac safety review panel ) were masked to treatment assignment . Patients r and omly assigned to sequential treatment received fluorouracil 500 mg/m(2 ) , epirubicin 75 mg/m(2 ) , and cyclophosphamide 500 mg/m(2 ) ( FEC-75 ) on day 1 of a 21-day cycle for four cycles followed by paclitaxel 80 mg/m(2 ) and trastuzumab 2 mg/kg ( after a 4 mg/kg loading dose ) once per week for 12 weeks , while those r and omly assigned to the concurrent treatment group received paclitaxel and trastuzumab once per week for 12 weeks followed by four cycles of FEC-75 ( on day 1 of each 21-day cycle ) and once-weekly trastuzumab , in the same doses as the sequential group . Surgery , including evaluation of the axilla , was done within 6 weeks of completion of neoadjuvant treatment . The primary outcome was the percentage of patients who had a pathological complete response in the intention-to-treat population . The study is registered with Clinical Trials.gov , number NCT00513292 . FINDINGS From Sept 15 , 2007 , to Dec 15 , 2011 , 282 women were enrolled ( 140 in the sequential group , 142 in the concurrent group ) . Two patients in the sequential group withdrew consent before starting treatment . 78 of 138 ( 56·5 % , 95 % CI 47·8 - 64·9 ) patients who received sequential treatment had a pathological complete response in the breast versus 77 of 142 ( 54·2 % , 95 % CI 45·7 - 62·6 ) who received concurrent treatment ( difference 2·3 % , 95 % CI -9·3 to 13·9 ) . No treatment-related deaths occurred . The most common severe toxic effects were neutropenia ( 35 [ 25·3 % ] of 138 patients in the sequential group vs 45 [ 31·7 % ] of 142 patients in the concurrent group ) and fatigue ( six [ 4·3 % ] vs 12 [ 8·5 % ] ) . Left ventricular ejection fraction dropped below the institutional lower limit of normal at week 12 in one ( 0·8 % ) of 130 patients who received sequential treatment and four ( 2·9 % ) of 137 patients who received concurrent treatment ; by week 24 , it had dropped below this limit in nine ( 7·1 % ) of 126 patients and in six ( 4·6 % ) of 130 patients , respectively . INTERPRETATION Concurrent administration of trastuzumab with anthracyclines offers no additional benefit and is not warranted . FUNDING US National Cancer Institute
Longer trastuzumab duration ( hera : 2 years vs. 1 year ) showed no improvement in dfs or os and a higher rate of cardiac events .
In the neoadjuvant setting ( neoaltto , GeparQuinto , Neosphere ) , trastuzumab alone or in combination with another anti-her2 agent ( lapatinib , pertuzumab ) was compared with either lapatinib or pertuzumab alone and showed superior or equivalent rates of pathologic complete response .
In the adjuvant setting , lapatinib alone or in combination with trastuzumab , compared with trastuzumab alone ( altto ) or with placebo ( teach ) , was not superior in dfs .
BACKGROUND This systematic review addresses the question " What is the optimal targeted therapy for female patients with early-stage human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (her2)-positive breast cancer ? "