Genomic test may help breast cancer patients safely skip chemotherapy
More than 4,400 patients in the OPTIMA trial had nearly identical outcomes when lower-risk cases skipped chemotherapy, researchers said.
- A landmark international trial has found that a groundbreaking genomic test allows thousands of breast cancer patients to safely skip chemotherapy, sparing them from unnecessary, toxic treatments without raising the risk of their cancer returning.
- The independent OPTIMA trial tracked 4,429 patients across six countries, focusing on those over 40 with newly diagnosed hormone-sensitive breast cancer, which is the world's most common form of the disease.
- The study utilized a specialized genomic test called Prosigna, which analyzes the activity of 50 distinct genes within tumor tissue to assign a precise "Risk of Recurrence" score, enabling doctors to base treatment choices on tumor biology rather than traditional clinical features.
- The results demonstrated that 68% of patients with clinically high-risk tumors had low genomic risk scores and could safely forgo chemotherapy entirely, managing their treatment with hormone therapy alone.
- Five years after treatment, the survival outcomes between the two groups were virtually identical, with 94.9% of patients who received chemotherapy being alive and cancer-free, compared to 93.7% of those who skipped it, satisfying strict medical criteria for non-inferiority.
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Many women with breast cancer could avoid chemotherapy – what you need to know about the genetic test
Yuganov Konstantin/Shutterstock.comBreast cancer treatment has come a long way, but one of the hardest questions has always been: who really needs chemotherapy, and who can safely do without it? Chemotherapy saves lives, but it also comes with serious side-effects and long‑term risks. A new study, presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting in Chicago, shows that a DNA‑based test of the tumour can help two‑thirds of c…
Millions of women with breast cancer could avoid chemotherapy thanks to a groundbreaking test, according to results from a study that could change the way cancer care is delivered worldwide, experts say.
Chemotherapy, which causes fatigue, nausea, hair loss, weakens the immune system, and more, only helps to a small extent with the most common form of cancer.
Millions of Breast Cancer Patients Can Avoid Chemotherapy, Study finds
What if chemotherapy wasn’t always necessary for breast cancer patients? What if a simple DNA test could help doctors decide who truly needs it—and who might safely avoid it?That’s exactly what a major international study is suggesting.Researchers led by University College London (UCL) tested more than 4,000 women with early-stage breast cancer across several countries, using a gene test called Prosigna. Instead of guessing based only on tumour …
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