One week ago, the city of San Antonio, Texas hosted its 37th annual Breast Cancer Symposium, spanning across five days.
The name of this cancer stems from the fact that it does not express the genes of three receptors that are commonly targeted by chemotherapy treatments. According to Celgene, TNBC makes up approximately 10% of breast cancer cases. In a 2007 study of 50,000 female breast cancer patients, TNBC had a 77% survival rate five years after diagnosis whereas other types of breast cancer had a 93% survival rate. Part of the discrepancy can be explained by TNBC’s aggressive nature.
Celgene’s website states that TNBC patients are four times more likely to see their cancer spread than patients with other types of cancer. In addition, TNBC cannot be treated by typical chemotherapy techniques that target progesterone receptor (PR), estrogen receptor (ER), HER2 receptors.
At the 2013 Breast Cancer Symposium, researchers from Northwestern University presented findings that suggested the combination of two drugs could be an effective treatment for TNBC. In their research, they used carboplatin, a chemotherapy medication, and eribulin – trade name Halaven.
In a study of 1,200 patients, the company’s drug, Abraxene, displayed a higher response rate than Paclitaxel, produced by Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) under the trade name Taxol. One of the main weaknesses of Taxol is that it is only approved for advanced breast cancer.