- Talazoparib may enable progression-free survival (PFS) from breast cancer.
- Talazoparib is beneficial to patients with hormone receptor-positive and triple-negative disease.
- It is currently in development for the treatment of advanced breast cancer.
Telazoparib’s work as an inhibitor
Mutations in the BRCA1/2 genes, which account for 5 to 10 percent of all breast cancers, cause defects in normal DNA damage repair. PARP inhibitors block an additional DNA repair pathway, and the anti-tumor effects of PARP inhibitors can be intensified in patients with BRCA mutations. Talazoparib works by not only inhibiting the PARP enzyme, but by trapping the enzyme on DNA to further prevent DNA repair.
To date, no PARP inhibitors have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat breast cancers, although three previously have been approved for the treatment of certain patients with ovarian cancers.
Novel breast cancer treatment in clinical trial
EMBRACA is an international, Phase III clinical trial enrolled 431 patients with locally advanced or metastatic and hereditary BRCA1/2 gene mutations. Patients with HER2-positive disease were excluded as there are approved targeted therapies for those cancers. Patients could have had up to three previous chemotherapies, including platinum-based therapies.
Participants were randomized 2:1 to receive either talazoparib (287) or physician's choice of treatment (PCT) of single-agent therapy (144), either capecitabine, eribulin, gemcitabine or vinorelbine. Fifty-four percent of participants had HR+ disease and 46 percent had TN breast cancer; BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations were split at 45 and 55 percent, respectively.
The median PFS, assessed by blinded independent review, was 8.6 months in the talazoparib arm, compared with 5.6 months in the PCT arm, a statistically significant improvement. The overall response rate, or percentage of patients with tumor shrinkage, was 62.6 percent and 27.2 percent in the talazoparib and PCT arms, respectively. Twelve participants had complete responses, all in the talazoparib arm.
Talazoparib versus chemotherapy
Grade 3-4 hematological adverse events occurred in 55 percent of patients receiving talazoparib and 39 percent of those on chemotherapy, but talazoparib was associated with fewer high-grade non-hematological events, including gastrointestinal and skin/subcutaneous tissue disorders. Grade 3-4 serious events occurred in 26 and 25 percent of patients receiving talazoparib and PCT, respectively. Adverse events resulting in death occurred in 2.1 percent of patients on talazoparib and 3.2 percent on PCT.
The study also will report overall survival, though the data are immature at this point and will continue to be monitored.
"It is encouraging to see this oral PARP inhibitor was well-tolerated and superior to chemotherapy alone. We look forward to seeing how overall survival is affected, but I think talazoparib will be an excellent option for patients with metastatic disease and BRCA mutations," said Litton.
Litton hopes to continue investigating the utility of PARP inhibitors in additional breast cancer patients with BRCA mutations, including those with early-stage disease, as well as possibilities for enhancing the activity of PARP inhibitors in patients without inherited BRCA mutations.
Reference:
- PARP Inhibitor Improves Progression-Free Survival in Patients with Advanced Breast Cancers and BRCA Mutations - (https://www.mdanderson.org/newsroom/2017/12/parp-inhibitor-improves-progression-free-survival-in-patients-with-advanced-breast-cancers-and-BRCA-mutations.html)
Source-Eurekalert