CompassHER2-pCR: Decreasing Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer Patients After Pre-surgery Chemo and Targeted Therapy
Status:
Recruiting
Trial end date:
2023-02-28
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
This trial studies how well paclitaxel, trastuzumab, and pertuzumab work in eliminating
further chemotherapy after surgery in patients with HER2-positive stage II-IIIa breast cancer
who have no cancer remaining at surgery (either in the breast or underarm lymph nodes) after
pre-operative chemotherapy and HER2-targeted therapy. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as
paclitaxel, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the
cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Trastuzumab and
pertuzumab are both a form of "targeted therapy" because they work by attaching themselves to
specific molecules (receptors) on the surface of tumor cells, known as HER2 receptors. When
these drugs attach to HER2 receptors, the signals that tell the cells to grow are blocked and
the tumor cell may be marked for destruction by the body's immune system. Giving paclitaxel,
trastuzumab, and pertuzumab may enable fewer chemotherapy drugs to be given without
compromising patient outcomes compared to the usual treatment.