Reports of neoadjuvant therapeutic trials in breast cancer, particular those of dual-agent HER2 blockade, have described improved pathological complete response (pCR) rates and associations of this surrogate end point with prolonged survival; however, the same therapies have not been reported to improve survival in the adjuvant setting, or indeed long-term patient outcomes after neoadjuvant therapy. In this Review, the multiplex factors that might explain these apparent discrepancies, including study designs issues, and clinical and biological differences, are discussed.
- Leticia De Mattos-Arruda
- Ronglai Shen
- Javier Cortés
