New Drug Approved for Advanced Breast Cancer After Other Treatments Fail
Summary
The FDA has approved a new drug called Etcamah for adults with advanced breast cancer that has stopped responding to hormone therapy. This drug, used with other cancer medicines, helps patients live longer before their cancer worsens and is paired with a blood test to detect resistance earlier.Key Facts
- Etcamah is approved for HR positive, HER2 negative advanced breast cancer that has spread beyond the breast.
- The drug is used together with CDK4/6 inhibitors, which target enzymes in cancer cells.
- Clinical trials showed patients on Etcamah had 16 months before cancer worsened, compared to 9.2 months with hormone therapy alone.
- The FDA granted accelerated approval, a fast process for serious illnesses, based on early benefits.
- A new blood test, Guardant360 CDx, detects a gene change (ESR1 mutation) that causes resistance to hormone therapy.
- This blood test allows doctors to switch patients to Etcamah before tumors grow again.
- Some side effects of Etcamah can be serious, such as heart arrhythmia, so patients need careful monitoring.
- More research is needed to show if Etcamah helps patients live longer overall, not just delay cancer progression.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.
