Mix of drugs can kill tumours in 11 days
A NEW combination drug treat- ment can destroy some breast cancer tumours in just 11 days, doctors said yesterday.
It could lead to many patients being spared surgery and subsequent chemotherapy.
The development applies to those with HER2- positive breast cancer, a particularly rapidly developing form of the disease.
Researchers have discovered that combining the drugs Tykerb and Herceptin and giving them to newly diagnosed sufferers appears to lead to tumours shrinking significantly or even disappearing.
Presenting their findings at the European Breast Cancer Conference in Amsterdam, experts described the discovery as exciting. Professor Nigel Bundred, from the University of Manchester, who presented the data, said: “This has groundbreaking potential because it allows us to identify a group of patients who, within 11 days, have had their tumours disappear with anti- HER2 therapy alone and who potentially may not require subsequent chemotherapy.
“This offers the opportunity to tailor treatment for each individual woman.”
The UK trial involved 257 women with newly diagnosed HER2positive breast cancer.
Between 15 and 25 per cent of women diagnosed with breast cancer have HER2, a total of 5,300 to 8,000 women a year.
Trial co- leader Professor Judith Bliss, from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, said it was “unexpected to see quite such dramatic responses”.
She added: “Our results are a strong foundation on which to build further trials of combination antiHER2 therapies prior to surgery which could reduce the number of women who require subsequent chemotherapy, which is also very effective but can lead to long- term side- effects.”
Professor Arnie Purushotham, senior clinical adviser at 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.
“This could mean some women can avoid chemotherapy after their surgery, sparing them the sideeffects.”
At the moment, women usually have their tumour removed during surgery followed by a combination of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormonal therapies and targeted drugs such as Herceptin.
Tykerb is not currently approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for use on the NHS. It is also not available via the Cancer Drugs Fund.