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December 8, 2016
Alicia Reale
216-844-5158
[email protected]
Department of Marketing and
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Cleveland, OH 44106
UH Seidman Cancer Center Expert to Present Novel Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
Immunotherapy Trial at 2016 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium
Meeting focuses on state-of-the-art breast cancer research, including immunotherapeutic approaches
CLEVELAND: A researcher from University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center will discuss his
upcoming immunotherapy clinical trial for triple-negative breast cancer at the 2016 San Antonio Breast
Cancer Symposium. The annual symposium is the premier meeting for more than 7,500 physicians and
scientists dedicated to breast cancer treatment, featuring state-of-the-art breast cancer research such
as experimental biology, etiology, prevention, diagnosis, and therapy of both breast cancer and
premalignant breast disease.
Joseph Baar, MD, PhD, Director of Breast Cancer Research at UH Seidman Cancer Center and
Associate Professor at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, will share details about a
phase II clinical trial testing the effectiveness of combining the chemotherapy drugs carboplatin and
nab-paclitaxel with an immunotherapeutic agent called pembrolizumab (Keytruda) for use in patients
with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. Dr. Baar’s poster presentation will be part of the Ongoing
Trials-Targeted Therapy session on December 8, 2016 from 5 pm to 7 pm.
“Up until now, women with triple-negative breast cancer have only had one treatment option, which is
chemotherapy. However, more recently, we’ve seen that the immune modulator pembrolizumab
improves outcomes in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer,” said Dr. Baar. “As a
result, it is now critical to explore how the addition of pembrolizumab to chemotherapy might improve
survival in patients with this type of breast cancer.”
Triple-negative breast cancer is a highly aggressive form which comprises 10-15 percent of newly
diagnosed early-stage breast cancer. Most triple-negative tumors are high grade and have a high
incidence of recurrence and metastases (spreading to other organs). Unlike other types of breast
cancer, there is no standard follow-up treatment for triple-negative breast cancer to prevent recurrence.
As triple-negative breast cancer progresses, tumor cells express a protein ligand called PD-L1, which
interacts with the PD-1 receptor on T-cells. T-cells are the immune system’s primary mechanism for
fighting back against harmful foreign invaders. The PD-L1 to PD-1 interaction prevents the T-cell from
responding to the tumor as a threat. Pembrolizumab binds to the T-cell’s PD-1 receptors and therefore
blocks the PD-1 to PD-L1 interaction, allowing the T-cells to be activated against the tumor cells. The
research team hypothesizes that the addition of such an immunotherapeutic agent to chemotherapy will
allow the body’s natural immune response to reduce disease recurrence to a greater extent than either
modality alone.
This is the first phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combining these two chemotherapeutic agents
with the immunotherapeutic agent pembrolizumab for this type of cancer.
The trial will enroll approximately 30 patients beginning in early 2017. Eligible patients must have
radiologically measurable and documented metastatic triple negative breast cancer, be mostly
functional day to day as measured by an ECOG performance status of between zero and one, must not
have received more than two prior therapies for this disease, and must be willing to undergo a
preliminary biopsy for research purposes. The trial is sponsored by Merck, which produces
pembrolizumab as Keytruda.
“Trials our faculty members present at SABCS and other research meetings around the world illustrate
the remarkable advances in oncology taking place today,” says Neal J. Meropol, MD, Chief, Division of
Hematology and Oncology, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center and Associate Director for
Clinical Research, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center at Case Western Reserve.
The symposium takes place December 6-10, 2016, and is hosted by The Cancer Therapy & Research
Center at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, the American Association for
Cancer Research, and Baylor College of Medicine.
About University Hospitals
Founded in 1866, University Hospitals serves the needs of over 1 million patients per year through an integrated
network of 18 hospitals, more than 40 outpatient health centers and 200 physician offices in 15 counties
throughout northern Ohio. The system’s flagship academic medical center, University Hospitals Cleveland
Medical Center, located on a 35-acre campus in Cleveland’s University Circle, is affiliated with Case Western
Reserve University School of Medicine. The main campus also includes University Hospitals Rainbow Babies &
Children's Hospital, ranked among the top children’s hospitals in the nation; University Hospitals MacDonald
Women's Hospital, Ohio's only hospital for women; and University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, part of the
NCI-designated Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. UH is home to some of the most prestigious clinical and
research programs in the nation, including cancer, pediatrics, women's health, orthopedics, radiology,
neuroscience, cardiology and cardiovascular surgery, digestive health, dermatology, transplantation and urology.
UH Cleveland Medical Center is perennially among the highest performers in national ranking surveys, including
“America’s Best Hospitals” from U.S. News & World Report. UH is also home to Harrington Discovery Institute at
University Hospitals – part of The Harrington Project for Discovery & Development. UH is the second largest
employer in northern Ohio with 26,000 employees. For more information, go to UHhospitals.org.