Breast cancer: Where we were and how far we’ve come

Liz Meszaros, MDLinx

San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium 2017

San Antonio, Texas, United States | December 05-09, 2017

Over the past few decades, great progress has been made in the field of breast cancer, according to Tatiana Prowell, MD, breast cancer scientific liaison, FDA Oncology Center of Excellence, and assistant professor of oncology, The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University.

“When you take a long view, you take sort of a 30,000-foot view, you realize that all of these little incremental gains that we make, that in the moment, may not feel that significant [that] over a decade, have completely transformed a disease from what it once was to what it will be in the future,” said Dr. Prowell.

She sent out a message to patients, imploring them to enroll in clinical trials so that this work can continue to go forward. Her message for investigators was, “Keep going. What you are doing matters, it counts.”

“My message to everyone in every sector is ‘keep it up.’ They’re really doing a tremendous job and it’s really gratifying to see,” Dr. Prowell concluded.

All Interviews

From this Conference

2:34

Are clinical trials representative of a broader patient population?
In clinical trials for cancer drug development, researchers have been enrolling patients who are otherwise healthy; patients who are asymptomatic, and have free mobility. By...
Tatiana Prowell, MD
1:15

The paradoxical role of family history in breast cancer risk
Although family history can influence a patient’s risk of developing breast cancer, it does not increase that risk once other risk factors are identified.
Amy C. Degnim, MD
2:51

Multidisciplinary management of locoregional breast cancer recurrence
Locoregional recurrences of breast cancers are rare, but when they do occur, can be challenging and typically require a multidisciplinary evaluation.
William Gradishar, MD

1:29

The future of breast cancer treatment
The future of breast cancer treatment should center on risk-stratifying patients in a better way, according to Tatiana Prowell, MD, breast cancer scientific liaison, FDA...
Tatiana Prowell, MD
1:32

The promise of radiotherapy
Exploring the interaction between radiation therapy and immunotherapy in enhancing responses to treatment in breast cancer patients is currently one of the main research...
Silvia Formenti, MD
2:34

Estrogen receptor expression in luminal tumors & recurrence and metastasis
Luminal breast cancer subtypes are characterized by estrogen-receptor and estrogen-related genes, which sets them apart from other tumors that are not hormonally driven.
Angela DeMichele, MD, MSCE

This activity is not sanctioned by, nor a part of, the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium 2017.