"Report from San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: Focusing on Metastatic Breast Cancer," with Dr. Matthew Ellis

Dr. Matthew Ellis, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, provides a review of the research presented at SABCS 2016 specifically for MBC. This webinar is in collaboration with MBCN and Theresa's Research Foundation.

4:36 Dr. Matthew Ellis’s thoughts about Metastatic breast cancer
5:57 Breast cancer is caused by mutations (as we get older our cell DNA ages and mutations, or corruptions in the DNA, occur, and they can lead to cancer)
10: 11 “Landscape of somatic mutations in 560 breast cancer whole genome sequences” (scientific paper that attempts to document all the genetic variation in breast cancer across the 3 billion base pairs that makes up the human genome)
12:20 New drugs introduced into treatment of metastatic breast cancer in last year (drugs that target cell enzyme called Cyclin Dependent Kinase: Palbociclib, Abemaciclib, Ribociclib for er+ breast cancer)
14:04 Paloma-2 Trial (Palbociclib)
16:31 MonaLeesa-2 Trial (Ribociclib)
17:39 Belle-3 Trial (Buparlisib; PIK3CA; only works effectively when PI3 Kinase mutation is present. Drugs in this pathway could be helpful for patients with metastatic disease and similar drugs with fewer side effects are in clinical trials.)
19:15 New ways to define therapeutic targets
“Proteogenomics connects somatic mutations to signalling in breast cancer” (scientific paper)
21:40 Can we make the diagnosis of breast cancer mutations easier? (Need for tissue biopsies is difficult because metastatic disease is buried in organs.)
22:36 Cell free plasma tumor DNA in breast oncology: DNA circulates in the blood stream and gene sequences from a tumor can be identified through a simple blood test without the need for a tissue biopsy. (Digital PCR)
23:36 New studies in metastatic disease: ESR1 activating mutations cluster in the LBD
24:32 Falcon Study (Fulvestrant vs. anastrozole)
25:44 Can we harness the immune system to treat breast cancer?
26:17 Breast cancer immunotherapy: Building on clinical success (scientific paper)
26:26 Targeting the PD-1 Pathway in Breast Cancer
28:31 Breast Cancer Can Induce Adaptive Immune Responses
29:07 PD-1/PD-L1 Blockade in Breast Cancer
30:08 Conclusions
30:39 Can we involve more patients in metastatic breast cancer research? (MBC Project, mbcproject.org; challenges of studying patient tumor samples; patient-reported data)

Q&A

36:23 Q&A: Which is the most promising research development for metastatic breast cancer announced at San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium?
37:30 Q&A: Was anything presented about metastatic triple negative breast cancer other than immunotherapy at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium?
39:21 Q&A: You mentioned cures for metastatic HER 2 positive breast cancer. Can you categorize the nature of the cure?
40:37 Q&A: In the slide you included about circulating cell-free DNA, were you referring to liquid biopsy? Is liquid biopsy being used in practice and are all liquid biopsies created equal?
44:18 Q&A: Is there research into whether drug holidays may help resistance?
45:51 Q&A: When is the best time to do genomic sequencing? Is genomic sequencing generally covered by insurance or Medicare?
49:20 Q&A: How can patients be connected to the clinical research community independent of big institutions?
53:20 Q&A: Was there anything reported about lobular metastatic breast cancer at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium?
56:22 Q&A: A recent scientific article mentioned that mutations vary by the sites being biopsied. How do we decide which sites to biopsy?
57:49 Q&A: Can a drug or chemotherapy regimen that was used successfully and then failed be used again at a later date and be successful?
59:18 Q&A: Any diet recommendations?

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