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Among persons with breast cancer previously treated with hormonal therapy, the AKT pathway inhibitor capivasertib when added to fulvestrant significantly prolonged progression-free survival as compared with fulvestrant alone.

An earlier report documented significant improvement in progression-free survival among patients with metastatic breast cancer treated with fulvestrant and a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor, ribociclib. With longer follow-up, it is clear that fulvestrant and ribociclib also prolong overall survival.

PIK3CA mutations occur in approximately 40% of patients with hormone receptor–positive breast cancer. A PI3K inhibitor, alpelisib, combined with fulvestrant led to a median progression-free survival of 11 months, as compared with 5.7 months with placebo plus fulvestrant. Hyperglycemia, rash, and diarrhea were more common with alpelisib.

The selective estrogen-receptor degrader imlunestrant plus abemaciclib led to a median progression-free survival of 9.4 months among patients with ER-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer (vs. 5.5 months with imlunestrant alone).

In the global CAPItello-291 randomized phase 3 study (NCT04305496) in patients with hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative advanced breast cancer and progression during/after aromatase inhibitor treatment, capivasertib–fulvestrant significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS) in the overall population and patients with PIK3CA/AKT1/PTEN -altered tumors versus placebo–fulvestrant. We assessed efficacy and safety of capivasertib–fulvestrant in a prespecified exploratory analysis of a Chinese cohort ( n  = 24) and extended study with the same protocol ( n  = 110). Clinically meaningful PFS benefit for capivasertib–fulvestrant was observed in the overall population (median PFS: 6.9 [capivasertib–fulvestrant] versus 2.8 [placebo–fulvestrant] months; hazard ratio 0.51, 95% CI 0.34–0.76), patients with PIK3CA/AKT1/PTEN -altered tumors ( n  = 46; 5.7 versus 1.9 months; hazard ratio 0.41, 95% CI 0.19–0.85) and PIK3CA/AKT1/PTEN -non-altered tumors (patients with confirmed next-generation sequencing results [ n  = 68]; 9.2 versus 2.7 months; hazard ratio 0.38; 95% CI 0.21–0.68). The most frequent adverse events (AEs) with capivasertib–fulvestrant were diarrhea (60.6% versus 11.3% with placebo–fulvestrant) and hyperglycemia (57.7% versus 17.7%). AEs leading to capivasertib–fulvestrant discontinuation were reported in 11.3% of patients versus 3.2% for placebo–fulvestrant. The benefit-risk profile of capivasertib–fulvestrant in the Chinese cohort was favorable; further exploration in patients with PIK3CA/AKT1/PTEN -non-altered tumors is warranted. The CAPItello-291 phase 3 study reported that capivasertib (an AKT inhibitor) and fulvestrant (a selective estrogen receptor degrader) improved progression free survival in patients with HR-positive/HER2-negative advanced breast cancer. Here, the authors report the results of an extended Chinese cohort recruited as part of the original global CAPItello-291 study.

Patients with HER2-positive breast cancer who have received two or more previous therapies for advanced disease have few effective treatment options. The monarcHER trial aimed to compare the efficacy of abemaciclib plus trastuzumab with or without fulvestrant with standard-of-care chemotherapy of physician's choice plus trastuzumab in women with advanced breast cancer. This phase 2, three-group, open-label trial was done across 75 hospitals, clinics, and medical centres in 14 countries. Eligible patients were women aged 18 years or older, who had hormone receptor-positive, HER2-positive advanced breast cancer with unresectable, locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic disease, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1, and who had previously received at least two HER2-targeted therapies for advanced disease. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1:1 to the abemaciclib, trastuzumab, and fulvestrant (group A), abemaciclib and trastuzumab (group B), or standard-of-care chemotherapy and trastuzumab (group C). Oral abemaciclib 150 mg 12 hourly was administered on days 1–21 of a 21-day cycle, intravenous trastuzumab 8 mg/kg on cycle 1 day 1, followed by 6 mg/kg on day 1 of each subsequent 21-day cycle, and intramuscular fulvestrant 500 mg on days 1, 15, and 29 and once every 4 weeks thereafter. Standard-of-care chemotherapy was administered as specified by the product label. Randomisation was by a computer-generated random sequence by means of an interactive web-response system and stratified by number of previous systemic therapies for advanced breast cancer and measurable versus non-measurable disease. The primary endpoint was investigator-assessed progression-free survival in the intention-to-treat population, first testing group A versus group C and, if this result was significant, then group B versus group C. Safety was assessed in all patients who had received at least one dose of study treatment. This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02675231) and is ongoing for long-term survival follow-up. Between May 31, 2016, and Feb 28, 2018, 325 patients were screened, of whom 237 eligible patients were enrolled and randomly assigned to groups A (n=79), B (n=79), and C (n=79). Median follow-up was 19·0 months (IQR 14·7–25·1). The study met its primary endpoint, showing a significant difference at the prespecified two-sided α of 0·2 in median progression-free survival between group A (8·3 months, 95% CI 5·9–12·6) and group C (5·7 months, 5·4–7·0; HR 0·67 [95% CI 0·45–1·00]; p=0·051). No difference was observed between median progression-free survival in group B (5·7 months, 95% CI 4·2–7·2) and group C (HR 0·94 [0·64–1·38]; p=0·77). The most common grade 3–4 treatment-emergent adverse event in groups A, B, and C was neutropenia (21 [27%] of 78 patients, 17 [22%] of 77, and 19 [26%] of 72). The most common serious adverse events were: in group A, pyrexia (three [4%]), diarrhoea (two [3%]), urinary tract infection (two [3%]), and acute kidney injury (two [3%]); in group B, diarrhoea (two [3%]) and pneumonitis (two [3%]); and in group C, neutropenia (four [6%]) and pleural effusion (two [3%]). Two deaths were attributed to treatment: one due to pulmonary fibrosis in group B and one due to febrile neutropenia in group C. The combination of abemaciclib, fulvestrant, and trastuzumab significantly improved progression-free survival versus standard-of-care chemotherapy plus trastuzumab while showing a tolerable safety profile. Our results suggest that a chemotherapy-free regimen might potentially be an alternative treatment option for patients with hormone receptor-positive, HER2-positive advanced breast cancer. Eli Lilly and Company.

The BRIGHT-2 study (NCT05077449) is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of bireociclib plus fulvestrant (BF) vs. placebo plus fulvestrant (F) in Chinese female patients with hormone receptor-positive (HR+)/HER2-negative (HER2-) advanced breast cancer (ABC) who had progressed on or after prior endocrine therapy (ET). Interim results were analyzed after 70% of progression-free survival (PFS) events across 64 centers in China between December 8, 2021, and March 28, 2023. Patients were randomized (2:1) to receive BF or F, with stratification based on visceral involvement (yes/no) and resistance to prior primary or secondary ET. As the primary outcome, PFS was significantly prolonged in the BF group ( n  = 204) (12.94 months; 95% CI: 11.07–not reached) compared to 7.29 months (95% CI: 5.45–11.04) in the F group ( n  = 101) (hazard ratio, 0.56; 95% CI: 0.39–0.80; p  = 0.001). The objective response rate in the BF group was 39.7% in the intention-to-treat population. Grade ≥3 adverse events were more frequent in the BF group (64.7%) than in the F group (18.8%), with neutropenia, leukopenia, and anemia being the most common. These findings suggest that BF is a promising therapeutic option for patients with HR+/HER2- ABC following ET failure. While CDK4/6 inhibitors have become standard of care in patients with HR+/HER2- advanced breast cancer (ABC), selecting the optimal inhibitor could improve care further. Here, the authors report planned interim analysis of the BRIGHT-2 study, a randomised phase 3 trial comparing bireociclib (CDK4/6i) and fulvestrant (ET) against placebo and fulvestrant in female HR + /HER2- ABC patients.

Lerociclib (GB491), a highly selective oral CDK4/6 inhibitor, has displayed anti-tumor activity and differentiated safety and tolerability profile in previous ph1/2 clinical trials. The LEONARDA-1, a randomized, double-blind, phase III study, was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of lerociclib in HR+/HER2− locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer patients, who had relapsed or progressed on prior endocrine therapy. A total of 275 patients were randomized at 1:1 ratio to receive lerociclib (137 patients, 150 mg twice daily) or placebo (138 patients) plus fulvestrant. Progression-free survival (PFS) assessed by investigators was significantly improved in lerociclib arm versus placebo arm (11.07 vs 5.49 months; hazard ratio, 0.451, 95% CI: 0.311-0.656, P  = 0.000016), meeting the pre-specified primary endpoint. The secondary endpoints included PFS assessed by Blinded Independent Central Review (BICR), objective response rate (ORR), duration of response (DOR), disease control rate (DCR), clinical benefit rate (CBR), overall survival (OS), safety and tolerability and pharmacokinetic profile. DOR is not reported, and OS data was immature at the data cut-off but unplanned ad hoc analysis is reported. These findings support lerociclib plus fulvestrant as a treatment option for patients with HR+/HER2− endocrine-resistant advanced breast cancer (ABC). (Funded by Genor Biopharma; LEONARDA-1 ClinicalTrials.gov identifier, NCT05054751.) CDK4/6 inhibition is often effective for those with breast cancer but success is limited by adverse reactions. Here, the authors report a phase III randomised trial comparing fulvestrant (oestrogen receptor antagonist) with or without lerociclib (CDK4/6 inhibitor) for the treatment of hormone receptor-positive HER2-negative, endocrine-resistant advanced breast cancer.

In patients with PIK3CA -mutated advanced breast cancer, inavolisib added to palbociclib–fulvestrant led to a significant overall survival benefit, with a higher incidence of certain toxic effects than placebo.

Vepdegestrant is an oral proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC) estrogen receptor (ER) degrader that directly harnesses the ubiquitin-proteasome system. In this phase 3, open-label, randomized trial, we enrolled patients with ER-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative advanced breast cancer who had received one previous line of cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 inhibitor therapy plus one line of endocrine therapy (and up to one additional line of endocrine therapy). Patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive vepdegestrant at a dose of 200 mg orally once every day of each 28-day cycle or fulvestrant at a dose of 500 mg, administered intramuscularly, on day 1 and day 15 of cycle 1 and on day 1 of subsequent cycles, with randomization stratified according to -mutation status and presence or absence of visceral disease. The primary end point was progression-free survival as assessed by blinded independent central review among the patients with mutations and among all the patients who underwent randomization. Progression-free survival was estimated with Kaplan-Meier methods and hazard ratios with a stratified Cox proportional-hazards model. A total of 624 patients underwent randomization; 313 were assigned to receive vepdegestrant, and 311 to receive fulvestrant. Among the 270 patients with mutations, the median progression-free survival was 5.0 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 3.7 to 7.4) with vepdegestrant and 2.1 months (95% CI, 1.9 to 3.5) with fulvestrant (hazard ratio, 0.58 [95% CI, 0.43 to 0.78]; P<0.001). Among all the patients, the median progression-free survival was 3.8 months (95% CI, 3.7 to 5.3) with vepdegestrant and 3.6 months (95% CI, 2.6 to 4.0) with fulvestrant (hazard ratio, 0.83 [95% CI, 0.69 to 1.01]; P = 0.07). Adverse events of grade 3 or higher occurred in 23.4% of the patients in the vepdegestrant group and in 17.6% of the patients in the fulvestrant group. Adverse events led to treatment discontinuation in 2.9% and 0.7% of the patients, respectively. Among patients with ER-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer, vepdegestrant was associated with significantly longer progression-free survival than fulvestrant in the subgroup with mutations but not in the full patient population. (Funded by Pfizer and Arvinas Estrogen Receptor; VERITAC-2 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05654623.).