title: Endocrine and targeted manipulation of breast cancer: summary statement for the Sixth Cambridge Conference.
abstract: The Sixth Cambridge Conference on Endocrine and Targeted Manipulation of Breast Cancer was convened in Cambridge, Massachusetts on April 30 and May 1, 2007. The purpose of this multidisciplinary meeting of leaders in clinical and basic research and patient treatment was to assess the most recent data in the field, articulate current best practices, and identify the next steps to advance both patient care and research. Topics included a review of data from major recent and ongoing trials of endocrine treatment in patients with early breast cancer and from studies combining endocrine therapy with other treatment. The current status of breast cancer prevention efforts was examined. Preclinical models of response and resistance, initial efforts to profile tumor response and resistance during endocrine therapy in patients, and new developments in pharmacogenomics were also highlighted. In this article, a synopsis of the key issues discussed, conclusions, and recommendations are summarized; these are presented at greater length in the individual articles and accompanying Open Discussions that comprise the full conference proceedings. In the 2 years since the Fifth Conference, we have gained valuable follow-up data from key trials in early breast cancer, which have helped to clarify both the efficacy and safety and tolerability of the available strategies for endocrine therapy. Observations using endocrine agents in combination with other treatment have been similarly extended. More detailed analysis of preclinical models has improved our understanding of resistance to endocrine therapy, and efforts to explore these and other mechanisms in the clinic are now underway. All of this has and continues to contribute to a growing understanding of how to optimize the use of endocrine agents in both treating and preventing breast cancer.
authors: Breast Cancer Program, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors: Steven E
authors: SE
authors: Come
authors: Department of Breast Medical Oncology, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors: Aman U
authors: AU
authors: Buzdar
authors: Division of Medical Oncology, The Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota.
authors: James N
authors: JN
authors: Ingle
authors: Department of Medicine, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, United Kingdom.
authors: Stephen R D
authors: SRD
authors: Johnston
authors: Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors: Angela M
authors: AM
authors: Brodie
authors: Department of Medicine, Breast Unit, Imperial College School of Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
authors: R Charles
authors: RC
authors: Coombes
authors: Breast Research Group, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
authors: William R
authors: WR
authors: Miller
authors: Clinical Trials and Epidemiology, University of Toronto at Toronto Sunnybrook Regional Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors: Kathleen I
authors: KI
authors: Pritchard
authors: Breast Oncology Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors: Eric P
authors: EP
authors: Winer
authors: Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland.
authors: Jo Anne
authors: JA
authors: Zujewski
authors: Breast Cancer Research, Massachusetts General Cancer Center, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors: Paul E
authors: PE
authors: Goss
mesh_terms: D000077384:Anastrozole; D018931:Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D047072:Aromatase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009376:Neoplasms, Hormone-Dependent / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D009570:Nitriles / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013629:Tamoxifen / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014230:Triazoles / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D018931:Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal; D047072:Aromatase Inhibitors; D009570:Nitriles; D014230:Triazoles; D013629:Tamoxifen; D000077384:Anastrozole