Impact of palbociclib combinations on treatment of advanced estrogen receptor-positive/human epidermal growth factor 2-negative breast cancer

Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease with multiple subgroups based on clinical and molecular characteristics. For the largest subgroup of breast cancers, hormone receptor-positive/human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2)-negative tumors, hormone treatment is the mainstay of therapy and is likely to result in significant improvement in disease outcomes. However, some of these cancers demonstrate de novo or acquired resistance to endocrine therapy. Despite intensive research to develop new strategies to enhance the efficacy of currently available treatment options for hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, progress has been slow, and there were few advances for a period of 10 years. In 2012, a new molecularly targeted therapeutic strategy, inhibition of mammalian target of rapamycin with everolimus, was introduced into clinical practice. Everolimus, in combination with a steroidal aromatase inhibitor, exemestane, resulted in an increase in progression-free survival, but not overall survival in patients with estrogen receptor (ER)+ve advanced disease who had progressed on hormone therapy. In 2015, the first cyclin-dependent kinases 4/6 (CDK4/6) inhibitor, palbociclib, received accelerated US Food and Drug Administration approval for use in combination with letrozole for the treatment of postmenopausal ER+ve/HER2−ve advanced breast cancer as initial, endocrine-based therapy. The addition of palbociclib to endocrine therapy resulted in longer progression-free survival than letrozole alone. One year later, palbociclib received a new indication, use in combination with fulvestrant, in both premenopausal and postmenopausal females with advanced breast cancer of the same subtype with disease progression following endocrine therapy. Adding palbociclib to fulvestrant resulted in a significantly increased median progression-free survival compared to fulvestrant monotherapy. These new combination regimens of palbociclib with endocrine agents represent an important addition to the therapeutic armamentarium in ER+ve/HER2−ve advanced and metastatic breast cancer.