BACKGROUND

In the Trastuzumab for Gastric Cancer study, it was found that trastuzumab combined with doublet chemotherapy (fluoropyrimidine and platinum) was the gold-standard treatment for gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma (GEA) that was locally advanced, unresectable, or metastatic (HER2+).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We performed a meta-analysis of randomized phase II/III studies testing trastuzumab in combination or alone.

RESULTS

This meta-analysis's findings involved 2048 patients in total. The treatment arm and hormone receptor status were used to stratify the combined HR. Overall, the PFS (Random model) HR [0.80] and 95% confidence intervals (CI) [0.68-0.95] were significantly higher for regimens containing trastuzumab, fluoropyrimidine, and platinum compared to regimens containing fluoropyrimidine and platinum.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this meta-analysis provide additional support for trastuzumab's use in treating HER2-positive GEA, particularly in cases where the disease lacks a HER2+ receptor.