Download Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Investment Opportunity:
Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Clinic
Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death among women, surpassed only by lung cancer.
Annually, approximately 69,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with a difficult-totreat and deadly variation known as triple-negative breast cancer. Through creation of a
dedicated Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Clinic, Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center will increase
understanding of the disease, identify targeted treatments and give women hope for a future
beyond breast cancer.
Sobering Statistics
Of the more than 231,000 women who will
be diagnosed with breast cancer this year,
more than 40,000 are expected to die from
the disease. Close to 30 percent of those
who lose their battle will succumb to triplenegative breast cancer.
This rare form of the disease is present when
cancer cells in the breast do not have
estrogen or progesterone receptors and also
have little or no human epidermal growth
factor receptor 2 (HER2).
As a result, triple-negative breast cancer
does not respond to most common breast
cancer treatments such as hormone therapy
and drugs that target estrogen,
progesterone and HER2 in cancer cells. The
lack of proteins in this deadly cancer
essentially renders most traditional
treatments ineffective.
Triple-negative breast cancer, which tends to
grow and spread more rapidly than other
forms of the disease, often strikes younger
women. African American and Hispanic
women are among those most commonly
afflicted with the disease.
Now, cancer care is on the threshold of
dramatic change. Clinical oncologists predict
the field will advance more rapidly in the
next 20 years than it has in the past 50
thanks to advances in clinical research.
Searching for New Treatments
With no commercially available targeted
therapy for triple-negative breast cancer,
treatment is currently limited to surgery,
chemotherapy and radiation – none of which
is particularly effective in curing the disease.
By establishing a Triple-Negative Breast
Cancer Clinic that is dedicated to
researching and delivering novel treatments
targeting the disease, Banner MD Anderson
will give women more treatment options and
even greater hope. The clinic will also attract
an array of pharmaceutical, biotech and
academic partners that share our goal of
improving outcomes for women diagnosed
with what is widely considered the most
deadly form of breast cancer.
Being able to do so, however, requires a
dedicated infrastructure, with specialized
space, experienced staff, meticulous data
collection, and blood- and tissue-sample
collection and storage facilities.
Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center
currently operates a Comprehensive Breast
Program, accredited by the National
Accreditation Program for Breast Centers.
The Triple-Negative Breast Clinic will be an
instrumental component of the breast
program. It also will play an important role
in advancing the cancer center’s research
efforts to better understand the biologic
basis of the disease and, in turn, give
patients greater access to novel treatments
and investigational medications.
Development of targeted therapies presents
the best opportunity to arm women for the
battle against triple-negative breast cancer.
With philanthropic support from a generous
community, Banner MD Anderson will be able
to establish a Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
Clinic and play an even bigger role in the
quest to make cancer history.