Precision Medicine and Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Current Landscape and Future Directions

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The implementation of precision medicine will revolutionize cancer treatment paradigms. Notably, this goal is not far from reality: genetically similar cancers can be treated similarly. The heterogeneous nature of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) made it a suitable candidate to practice precision medicine. Using TNBC molecular subtyping and genomic profiling, a precision medicine-based clinical trial is ongoing. This review summarizes the current landscape and future directions of precision medicine and TNBC. ABSTRACT: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive and heterogeneous subtype of breast cancer associated with a high recurrence and metastasis rate that affects African-American women disproportionately. The recent approval of targeted therapies for small subgroups of TNBC patients by the US ‘Food and Drug Administration’ is a promising development. The advancement of next-generation sequencing, particularly somatic exome panels, has raised hopes for more individualized treatment plans. However, the use of precision medicine for TNBC is a work in progress. This review will discuss the potential benefits and challenges of precision medicine for TNBC. A recent clinical trial designed to target TNBC patients based on their subtype-specific classification shows promise. Yet, tumor heterogeneity and sub-clonal evolution in primary and metastatic TNBC remain a challenge for oncologists to design adaptive precision medicine-based treatment plans.