Roisin M. Connolly, MB

The goals of care for patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive advanced breast cancer include prolongation of disease-free and overall survival, amelioration of symptoms, and improvement in quality of life.

Clinicians and bioinformatics experts must learn to speak the same language, starting with basic principles regarding analytical validity, clinical validity, and clinical utility. More than ever, a true partnership between clinical, laboratory, and bioinformatics scientists as part of a multidisciplinary team is needed to benefit our patients.

Breast cancer is a significant global health issue: An updated analysis by the International Agency for Research on Cancer estimated that there were 1.38 million new breast cancer cases diagnosed in 2008 and confirmed that it remains the most frequent cause of cancer death in women worldwide.

While the administration of neoadjuvant chemotherapy is recommended for women with locally advanced breast cancer, its use in the primary operable setting has been debated and is the focus of this review.

The management of breast cancer in women under the age of 40 continues to challenge oncologists despite many recent therapeutic advances. The higher rates of breast cancer recurrence and death in this cohort strongly correlate with unfavorable clinicopathologic features