Influence of hormone therapy in breast cancer chemotherapy

Adding hormone therapy to neoadjuvant (preoperative) chemotherapy does not improve the pathological response of the tumor among patients with hormone-positive breast cancer.

The pathomorphological response is understood as a decrease in the size of the tumor or its complete disappearance according to the results of postoperative histological examination after preoperative drug therapy.

Significant tumor reduction or complete absence of tumor cells is a positive prognostic factor, and therefore the possibility of intensifying neoadjuvant regimens is regularly investigated.

The randomized ELIMINATE study of adding letrozole to anthracycline/taxane-containing neoadjuvant chemotherapy did not show a significant improvement in response (22.9% responses in the letrozole addition group versus 19.5% in the chemotherapy alone group). Thus, the use of hormonal therapy in the neoadjuvant mode at the moment seems to be inappropriate. We would like to thank the Head of the Department of Antitumor Drug Treatment for the up-to-date information, oncologist K+31 Zapad E. F. Satirova rosoncoweb.ru