HERA (herceptin after chemo) trial results

[*_Christine MH_*]

It's a bit brief, but I know that some of you have treatment decisions that depend on this result and are eagerly awaiting the details.

"Roche and Breast International Group (BIG)(1) announced that targeted anti-cancer therapy Herceptin (trastuzumab) achieved a highly significant 46% reduction in the risk of cancer coming back for women with early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer. HERA (HERceptin Adjuvant), an international, phase III study, investigated treatment with Herceptin for 12 or 24 months versus no treatment (observation) in patients who had previously undergone a range of surgical, chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy interventions. HER2-positive breast cancer is a particularly aggressive form of the disease which affects approximately 20 - 30% of women with breast cancer(2), so early and accurate determination of HER2 status is an essential step in the management of the disease."

For more info see: Herceptin Delivers Impressive Improvement in Disease-Free Survival for Women With Early-Stage HER2-Positive Breast Cancer (http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=146047)

This press release is also available in Spanish: http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=146050

in German: http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=146049

and in French: http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=146048

[Claudia]

Have there been any clincial trials with Herceptin for pt's who are not early stage breast ca?

[*_Christine MH_*]

Hi Claudia,

Yes, of course. There have been many and many are going on as well. The reason why this is big news is that this is the first evidence that herceptin by itself after chemo makes a big difference in preventing BC recurrence. Up to now in many countries it has been nearly impossible to get herceptin until the BC came back. This trial results indicates that herceptin is much more effective when used early.

The participants in the trial needed to be diagnosed with primary breast cancer, been diagnosed as strongly HER2-positive (e.g. IHC3+ and/or FISH+), and have completed a course of standard systemic chemotherapy (standard chemotherapy administered before or after surgery) prior to enrolment.

The full details of the HERA results are not out yet, but probably will be later today.

Best wishes,
Christine

[dberg]

I was wandering around the NCI website and found an area for ASCO conference updates. You can click on each date of the conference to see the highlights. Nothing yet about the herceptin trials though.