HER2+ subgroups, beneficial for breast cancer

According to a new study released by the Translational Genomics Group at Vall d`Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO), situated in Barcelona, HER2+ breast cancer responds better to chemotherapy and anti-HER2 therapy. The study leader is Aleix Prat, Principal Investigator of VHIO`s Translational Genomics Group who worked in collaboration with José Baselga, Physician-in-Chief of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, situated in New York. The results of this study were published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.

It is considered that not every HER2+ tumor responds identically to anti-HER2 therapy. Tumors disappear in some patients while others don`t present any response to the therapy or become resistant to it, in combination with chemotherapy.

“There is no doubt that gene expression in breast cancer provides us with essential biological information to better determine the diagnosis, treatment, relapse risk and possibilities of survival”, said Aleix Prat. Treatment strategies are recommended for characterizing the tumor in every patient apart.