Preop trastuzumab eradicates tumors in 45.5% of HER2+ patients

New data presented as part of a late-breaking plenary session at the 6th European Breast Cancer Conference in Berlin showed that neoadjuvant trastuzumab (Herceptin) in combination with standard chemotherapy produced a pathological complete response rate in 45.5% of women with HER2-positive early breast cancer.

The GeparQuattro study is a randomized phase III study that enrolled 1,510 breast cancer patients. The 453 patients with HER2-positive disease received four cycles of epirubicin plus cyclophosphamide plus trastuzumab. Patients then received one of three treatment options: four cycles of docetaxel (Taxotere) plus trastuzumab; docetaxel plus capecitabine (Xeloda) plus trastuzumab concomitantly; or docetaxel plus trastuzumab followed by capecitabine plus trastuzumab.