Cisplatin Again Shows Promise As TNBC Treatment

The chemotherapy drug cisplatin may be effective against triple-negative breast cancer, especially those related to the BRCA1 gene. As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (January 25, 2010), researchers treated 28 women with stage II or III with TNBC with four cycles of 75 mg of cisplatin every 21 days. The women then had surgery and radiation, based on the assessment of their individual doctors. Of the 28 women:

• 6 achieved pathologically complete response, which has been associated in previous studies with long-term reduction in recurrence. This included women with the BRCA1 gene.

• 18 had a clinical complete or partial response, also a positive sign for long-term health.

• 4 showed a progression of the disease.

Younger women showed a better response to the drug, as did women with low BRCA1 expression.

An earlier study published in the Annals of Oncology also showed positive results with cisplatin.

I blogged about cisplatin, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide (4HC), and docetaxel on TNBC tumors and on Italian trials using cisplatin, epirubicin, and paclitaxel (PET).