Is pyrotinib with vinorelbine effective in treating HER2+ metastatic breast cancer?

This study was carried out to examine the safety and effectiveness of pyrotinib (Irene) in combination with vinorelbine (Navelibine) is in treating metastatic breast cancer (BC). The authors found that this treatment combination showed promising results and was well tolerated in these patients. 

BC is one of the most common forms of cancer found in women. Metastatic BC has spread around the body. MBC is difficult to treat and is often resistant to many forms of existing treatment. This creates a demand for new treatments. 

HER2 is a protein found on some BC cells. This protein makes the BC cells resistant to different forms of treatment. HER2+ BC is often difficult to treat and can spread easily. Pyrotinib is a new targeted therapy. It targets the HER2 protein and stops cancer cells from growing and spreading. It is commonly used with chemotherapy drugs such as capecitabine (Xeloda). Vinorelbine is another chemotherapy drug that is effective in MBC and is well tolerated. However, the safety and effectiveness of combining pyrotinib with vinorelbine in patients with HER2-positive BC are still unknown.  

This study included 97 patients with HER2-positive MBC. All patients were treated with vinorelbine and pyrotinib. 67% of patients had previously received 2 or more different treatments for MBC. The average follow-up for this trial was 8.7 months. 

Overall, 34.3% of patients responded to treatment. The average survival without disease progression was 7.8 months. Patients who received one line of treatment before had an average survival without disease progression of 12 months. Patients who received 2 previous treatments had an average survival without disease progression of 6.4 months. 

The most common side effects were diarrhea (22.7%), and low white blood cell counts (4.1%). 

The authors found that the combination of pyrotinib and vinorelbine had promising effects and was well tolerated in patients with HER2-positive MBC.

The study was carried out in a Chinese population so might not translate well to a worldwide population. The study had a very small number of participants and a short follow-up period. It also did not have a comparison group. Further studies are needed.