Published online Aug 10, 2014. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v5.i3.440
Revised: March 4, 2014
Accepted: April 17, 2014
Published online: August 10, 2014
Processing time: 217 Days and 2.7 Hours
During the last 15 years we have witnessed an unprecedented expansion in the drugs developed to target human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) positive breast cancer. Trastuzumab, pertuzumab, ado-trastuzumab emtansine and lapatinib are currently food and drug administration (FDA)-approved for the treatment of breast cancer patients with HER-2 over-expressed. However, given the amount of information gathered from years of uninterrupted clinical research, it is essential to have periodic updates that succinctly recapitulate what we have learnt over these last years and help us to apply that information in our daily practice. This review will pursue that objective. We will summarize the most relevant and updated information related to the state of the art management of HER-2 positive breast cancer in all the clinical scenarios including the adjuvant, neoadjuvant and metastatic settings. But we will also critically appraise that literature in order to highlight some key clinical concepts that should not be overlooked. Lastly, this review will also point out some of the most promising strategies that are currently being tested and may soon become available.
Core tip: This is a review manuscript with the most updated information regarding the state of the art management of human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 positive breast cancer. It summarizes the most relevant and updated information derived from more than 40 phase II and III clinical trials that constitute the theoretical framework to support our daily practice. It also highlights some key clinical concepts that should not be overlooked by critically appraising the current literature. Finally, it gives the reader with a compilation of potential new agents that are currently being tested and may soon become the next step in the battle against this disease.