title: The Role of Targeted Agents in the Treatment of Metastatic Breast Cancer.
abstract: To date, blockade of growth factor receptors is the mainstay of targeted therapy in metastatic breast cancer (mBC). Monoclonal antibodies such as trastuzumab and bevacizumab represent the first generation of molecular-based therapies. Both the HER2 inhibitors and the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antagonists have shown synergism with a broad spectrum of established cytotoxins, thus being approved for first-line treatment of mBC in combination with taxanes. As a next step, tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have been integrated into daily routine as an alternative approach for targeting HER2: The dual HER1/2 inhibitor lapatinib demonstrated activity in trastuzumab-pretreated mBC patients in combination with capecitabine. Furthermore, chemotherapy-free regimens (trastuzumab or lapatinib plus aromatase inhibitors) have been identified as additional options for hormone receptor (HR)- and HER2-positive patients. Recently published data indicate that a combination of two biologicals such as lapatinib and trastuzumab can be effective as a treatment beyond trastuzumab related progression. Multitarget TKIs have the potential to inhibit several signaling pathways involved in breast cancer-related angiogenesis. Until now, they have failed to show a clear benefit in mBC. On the other hand, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibition, mediated by a new class of small molecules, is an interesting area of investigation. Future directions of research in HER2-positive breast cancer focus on the evaluation of novel antibodies (pertuzumab, T-DM1), and irreversible TKIs (neratinib, BIBW 2992) and inhibitors of HER2-related downstream signaling (mTOR, TORC 1/2, PI3K/Akt) and of receptor cross-talk (IGFR).
authors.affiliation: Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, University Hospital Otto-von-Guericke Magdeburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bischoff
authors.forename: Atanas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ignatov