08/02/2021 9:00
Clarín.com
Society
Updated 08/02/2021 9:00 AM
The
breast cancer
figures are
worrying.
As estimated by the National Cancer Institute, about
21,500 new cases
are diagnosed
per year.
That is,
sixty cases a day.
Specialists emphasize the importance of self-examinations and regular checks.
Every scientific advance in this area is fundamental
, since it has concrete repercussions on the lives of tens of thousands of women. This year, at the
annual Congress of the American Society of Clinical Oncology
-the largest scientific event of the specialty in the world-, very auspicious research was presented for patients in advanced stages of the disease.
It is a clinical study that combines the
drug
ribociclib
together with hormonal therapy
(
fulvestrant
).
Ribociclib
is the only medication of its kind. It had already shown a prolongation of survival in women with a common subtype of metastatic breast cancer, known as RH + / HER2. It is now known that the results are sustained over time.
Based on the new conclusions of the "Monaleesa-3" study, it was observed that
ribociclib
reduces the relative risk of death by 36%
and delays
the progression of the disease by
more than four years
, providing survival to patients.
It also manages to
extend the need for chemotherapy up to four years, compared
to 2.4 years in those who received only hormonal therapy.
The disease progresses to a metastatic stage in one third of women.
"Postmenopausal women generally respond less to therapies when their disease is in
advanced or metastatic stage,
but this medication has shown extremely encouraging results in this group. From the first data we knew that it was able to prolong survival, but now we know that this benefit it continues to be sustained for unthinkable periods a short time ago, "said
Valeria Cáceres
, clinical oncologist, head of the Clinical Oncology Unit of the Ángel Roffo Institute.
"Some women are initially diagnosed at an advanced stage and that is something we have to avoid, with better awareness strategies about breast controls. In any case, other times they are patients who come with an extensive history of the disease, different treatments, surgeries and one or more relapses. Delaying the need for chemotherapy is very valuable, because all this time gained from a good quality of life in this advanced stage perhaps allows them to remain active and perform daily tasks ", added
Guillermo Lerzo
, clinical oncologist , Head of the Clinical Oncology Unit of the María Curie Oncology Hospital
.
In the same vein, Cáceres said that a real break is taking place in terms of
new therapies
for the treatment of breast cancer.
One in eight women who live to age 80 will develop breast cancer.
"This gives patients the
possibility of being able to
access new developments in the future
that complement the current approach and continue to contribute to 'chronifying' this oncological disease, when until a few years ago the advanced stages offered few treatment alternatives ", concluded the specialist.
MG
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