HonCode

Go Back   HER2 Support Group Forums > her2group
Register Gallery FAQ Members List Calendar Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 03-10-2016, 07:26 PM   #1
Lani
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 4,778
Thumbs up FABULOUS NEWS..but problematically reported by bbc

"These results are very promising if they stand up in the long run"

"We would have to be very clear we're not taking a backwards step and increasing the risk of relapse," Prof Bliss added.

"Such a rapid response to treatment could soon give doctors the unprecedented ability to identify women responding so well that they would not need gruelling chemotherapy."


^^^^^
http://www.bbc.com/news/health-35775314
here it is:

Health
Tumours shrunk 'dramatically' in 11 days
By James Gallagher
Health editor, BBC News website
7 hours ago
From the section Health
Breast cancerImage copyrightSPL
A pair of drugs can dramatically shrink and eliminate some breast cancers in just 11 days, UK doctors have shown.
They said the "surprise" findings, reported at the European Breast Cancer Conference, could mean some women no longer need chemotherapy.
The drugs, tested on 257 women, target a specific weakness found in one-in-ten breast cancers.
Experts said the findings were a "stepping stone" to tailored cancer care.
The doctors leading the trial had not expected or even intended to achieve such striking results.
They were investigating how drugs changed cancers in the short window between a tumour being diagnosed and the operation to remove it.
But by the time surgeons came to operate, there was no sign of cancer in some patients.
Prof Judith Bliss, from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, said the impact was "dramatic".
She told the BBC News website: "We were particularly surprised by these findings as this was a short-term trial.
"It became apparent some had a complete response. It's absolutely intriguing, it is so fast."
Breast cancerImage copyrightSPL
Image caption
More than 50,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year
The drugs were lapatinib and trastuzumab, which is more widely known as Herceptin.
They both target HER2 - a protein that fuels the growth of some women's breast cancers.
Herceptin works on the surface of cancerous cells while lapatinib is able to penetrate inside the cell to disable HER2.
The study, which also took place at NHS hospitals in Manchester, gave the treatment to women with tumours measuring between 1 and 3cm.
In less than two weeks of treatment, the cancer disappeared entirely in 11% of cases, and in a further 17% they were smaller than 5mm.
Current therapy for HER2 positive breast cancers is surgery, followed by chemotherapy and Herceptin.
But Prof Bliss believes the findings could eventually mean some women do not need chemotherapy.
However, that will require larger studies especially as HER2 positive cancers have a higher risk of coming back.
"We would have to be very clear we're not taking a backwards step and increasing the risk of relapse," Prof Bliss added.
Baroness Delyth Morgan, the chief executive at Breast Cancer Now, said: "We hope this particularly impressive combination trial will serve as a stepping stone to an era of more personalised treatment for HER2 positive breast cancer.
"Such a rapid response to treatment could soon give doctors the unprecedented ability to identify women responding so well that they would not need gruelling chemotherapy."
Breast cancer is now thought of as at least ten separate diseases, each with a different cause, life expectancy and needing a different treatment.
Matching the specific errors in a tumour to targeted drugs is considered the future of cancer medicine.
Breast cancers, and particularly HER2 positive tumours, are at the forefront of this revolution in treatment.
Prof Arnie Purushotham, from Cancer Research UK which funded the study, said: "These results are very promising if they stand up in the long run, and could be the starting step of finding a new way to treat HER2 positive breast cancers."
Follow James on Twitter.
Lani is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-11-2016, 06:20 AM   #2
sarah
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: france
Posts: 1,648
Re: FABULOUS NEWS..but problematically reported by bbc

sounds great, hopefully will become the standard for people diagnosed with HER2 bc.
__________________
sarah is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-11-2016, 07:35 AM   #3
jra40
Senior Member
 
jra40's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Pittsburgh, PA.
Posts: 260
Re: FABULOUS NEWS..but problematically reported by bbc

This is so fabulous! I was in this study here in Pittsburgh, did neoadjuvant treatment and my tumor shrunk to nothing when I went into surgery. So excited about this and hopefully Tykerb will be approved soon so many lives will be saved!
__________________
11/17/10 - Diagnosed with 4.5cm tumor in right breast, IDC, Stage 2, Nuclear grade 2, ER+ PR+ HER2+
12/13/10 - Lymph node biopsy - negative
12/28/10 - Started neo-adjuvant treatment along with clinical trial with 4 rounds of AC chemo every 3 weeks
3/15/11 - Began weekly Taxol/Herceptin infusions along with 750mg of Tykerb taken by mouth daily
6/28/11 - Finished last cycle of Taxol
7/27/11 - Breast MRI shows tumor has dissolved, remarkable reaction to chemo
8/31/11 - Lumpectomy, Sentinel Node biopsy. Node negative, clear margins, 7mm of cancer left over from chemo.
10/05/11 - Started radiation, 5 days a week for 7 weeks.
11/8/11 - Finished radiation
3/21/12 - Last Herceptin!
3/26/12 - Port removed!
Tamoxifen for 5 years
8/4/15 - Hysterectomy & bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. Due to large fibroids. No cancer!
8/8/15 - Started Arimidex
jra40 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-11-2016, 12:22 PM   #4
Ellie F
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,526
Re: FABULOUS NEWS..but problematically reported by bbc

Hi all
Been checking this out here in England !
My understanding is that herceptin and lapatinib were given for 2 weeks WITHOUT chemo hence the excitement about the response and the hope that some women will not need chemo.

Will post any further information I find.

Ellie
Ellie F is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -7. The time now is 01:10 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright HER2 Support Group 2007 - 2021
free webpage hit counter