-Paclitaxel for the treatment of breast cancer: an update across treatment settings.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this systematic review is to discuss recent studies and ongoing trials of -paclitaxel in breast cancer and to examine the potential role of -paclitaxel as a backbone for immuno-oncology therapies.

METHODS

PubMed and selected congress proceedings were searched for studies of -paclitaxel in breast cancer published between 2013 and 2015. All phase II and III clinical trials, retrospective analyses, and institutional studies were included. Active, ongoing, phase II or III trials on -paclitaxel that were listed on ClinicalTrials.gov were also included.

RESULTS

Sixty-three studies, including 23 in early-stage and 30 in metastatic breast cancer (some studies not classifiable by setting), were included in this analysis. Trials of neoadjuvant -paclitaxel-containing regimens have reported pathological complete response rates ranging from 5.7 to 53%. Median overall survival in metastatic breast cancer studies ranged from 10.8 to 23.5 months, depending on dose and regimen. Adverse event profiles of -paclitaxel were generally similar to those reported from previous studies. Several ongoing trials are evaluating -paclitaxel in the early-stage and metastatic settings, including in combination with immuno-oncology agents.

CONCLUSIONS

-Paclitaxel continues to demonstrate promising efficacy in breast cancer. Recent studies demonstrate high pathological complete response rates in early-stage breast cancer, particularly in triple-negative breast cancer, an area of high unmet need, and encouraging overall survival in metastatic breast cancer across doses and schedules. Ongoing trials will provide further insights into the role of -paclitaxel in breast cancer including use as a potential backbone chemotherapy agent for immuno-oncology therapies such as checkpoint inhibitors.