Fulvestrant can therefore be considered as alternative therapy to anastrozole or exemestane in postmenopausal women with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer that has recurred on prior adjuvant endocrine therapy or progressed on prior endocrine therapy for advanced disease .
A systematic review was undertaken to examine all available evidence to develop and support clinical recommendations regarding the use of fulvestrant ( Faslodex ® ) as systemic therapy of locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer in postmenopausal women .
Fulvestrant, formerly ICI 182,780, is as effective as anastrozole in postmenopausal women with advanced breast cancer progressing after prior endocrine treatment.
PURPOSE To compare the efficacy and tolerability of fulvestrant ( formerly ICI 182,780 ) and anastrozole in postmenopausal women with advanced breast cancer progressing after prior endocrine treatment . PATIENTS AND METHODS Patients ( n = 451 ) with advanced breast cancer were r and omized to receive fulvestrant 250 mg as a once-monthly ( one x 5 mL ) intramuscular injection or an oral dose of anastrozole 1 mg in this open , parallel-group , multicenter trial . The primary end point was time to progression ( TTP ) . Secondary end points included objective response ( OR ) rates , defined as complete response ( CR ) or partial response ( PR ) , duration of response ( DOR ) , and tolerability . RESULTS Patients were followed for a median period of 14.4 months . In terms of TTP , fulvestrant was as effective as anastrozole ( hazard ratio , 0.98 ; confidence interval [ CI ] , 0.80 to 1.21 ; P = .84 ) . Median TTP was 5.5 months for fulvestrant and 5.1 months for anastrozole . OR rates showed a numerical advantage for fulvestrant ( 20.7 % ) over anastrozole ( 15.7 % ) ( odds ratio , 1.38 ; CI , 0.84 to 2.29 ; P = .20 ) . Clinical benefit rates ( CR + PR + stable disease > or = 24 weeks ) were 44.6 % for fulvestrant and 45.0 % for anastrozole . Median DOR was 14.3 months for fulvestrant and 14.0 months for anastrozole . Both treatments were well tolerated , with 3.2 % and 1.3 % of fulvestrant- and anastrozole-treated patients , respectively , withdrawn from treatment because of an adverse event . CONCLUSION Fulvestrant was as effective as anastrozole . These data confirm that fulvestrant is an additional , effective , and well-tolerated treatment for advanced breast cancer in postmenopausal women whose disease progressed on prior endocrine therapy
Fulvestrant can therefore be considered as alternative therapy to anastrozole or exemestane in postmenopausal women with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer that has recurred on prior adjuvant endocrine therapy or progressed on prior endocrine therapy for advanced disease .
A systematic review was undertaken to examine all available evidence to develop and support clinical recommendations regarding the use of fulvestrant ( Faslodex ® ) as systemic therapy of locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer in postmenopausal women .