Primary systemic therapy for operable breast cancer

Primary systemic therapy of breast cancer.

Primary systemic therapy (PST) or neoadjuvant therapy is used in nonmetastatic breast cancer to treat systemic disease earlier, decrease tumor bulk ideally to a complete pathological response (pCR), and reduce the extent of surgery. The multitude of clinical trials using PST in breast cancer patients has not proven the fundamental hypotheses of improved overall survival and disease-free surviva...

Surgery versus primary endocrine therapy for operable primary breast cancer in elderly women (70 years plus).

BACKGROUND Several studies have evaluated the clinical effectiveness of endocrine therapy alone in women aged 70 years or over and who are fit for surgery. OBJECTIVES To identify and review the evidence from randomised trials comparing primary endocrine therapy (endocrine therapy alone) to surgery, with or without adjuvant endocrine therapy, in the management of women aged 70 years or over wi...

Neoadjuvant versus adjuvant systemic therapy for operable breast cancer: equivalent outcomes?

Women's Experiences with Deciding on Neoadjuvant Systemic Therapy for Operable Breast Cancer: A Qualitative Study

Objective We explored, qualitatively, in a sample of Australian early-stage breast cancer patients eligible for neoadjuvant systemic therapy (NAST): (i) their understanding of the choice of having NAST; (ii) when and with whom the decision on NAST was made; and (iii) strategies used by patients to facilitate their decision on NAST. Methods A sub-sample of patients participating in a larger in...

Oral bisphosphonates as adjuvant therapy for operable breast cancer.

Bone is the most common site of metastatic spread from primary operable breast cancer, causing pain, fractures, and hypercalcemia. This spread depends on the release of osteolytic substances by the cancer cells, which activate osteoclasts to cause bone resorption. The osteoclasts also release growth factors that can act back on the cancer cells to activate growth. This vicious circle thereby fa...