Anthracyclines in the treatment of early breast cancer friend or foe?

Standard chemotherapy for early breast cancer consists generally of an anthracycline - taxane - based regimen, preferably in sequence. Anthracyclines are among the most active cytotoxic drugs against breast cancer. Nevertheless, benefits attained by the use of the more potent anthracycline schedules must be balanced against increased short - and long - term toxicity, and treatment options must be individualized for each patient. Authors review available data regarding anthracycline efficacy and toxicity in the early breast cancer setting and the potential directions for future research.