Precisely quantifying the amount of different growth proteins did not predict a patient’s outcome after treatment for breast cancer, according to new research from the Mayo Clinic.
The findings are a disappointment to oncologists who had hoped to be able to gauge how well the treatment would work.
The research focused on HER2-positive breast cancer, which gets its name from a protein called human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 that promotes cancer cell growth.
The study’s senior investigator said it debunked the hopeful notion that measuring levels of different proteins in the HER2 family could help oncologists better tailor their use of the therapy Herceptin.
Read more at Mayo Clinic and Yale University