Dr. Tolaney on the Neoadjuvant Therapy for HER2-Positive Breast Cancer

Sara M. Tolaney, MD, MPH, instructor of medicine, Harvard Medical School, attending physician of medical oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses neoadjuvant HER2-directed therapy for patients with breast cancer.

Since 2013, pertuzumab (Perjeta)-based chemotherapy has dominated the treatment landscape in the preoperative setting, based on the results of the NeoSphere and TRYPHAENA trials, states Tolaney.

However, now there are data from the APHINITY trial looking at the long-term benefits of pertuzumab in the adjuvant setting. Since the results of this trial demonstrate that not all patients will experience a long-term benefit with pertuzumab, this could potentially change the approach to treatment in the neoadjuvant setting.