Recommendation of adjuvant chemotherapy and trastuzumab in older adults with HER2-positive breast cancer: A survey of oncologists

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Background: Though substantial evidence supports the use of adjuvant trastuzumab in patients with HER2-positive breast cancer, a lesser amount of data is available to guide use of this therapy in older adults. The objective of the current study is to understand how patient age and health status impact the oncologists' decision to recommend adjuvant therapy in older women with HER2-positive breast cancer. Methods: Medical oncologists (n=151) participated in an online survey comprised of case scenarios with patients of varying age (70, 75, 80, 85) and health status (good, average, poor) with a T2(4 cm) N2(4+ LN) ER(-), HER2(+) breast cancer. Oncologists could offer the hypothetical patient treatment with chemotherapy and trastuzumab, chemotherapy alone, trastuzumab alone, or no therapy. The influence of age and health status on treatment recommendations was assessed using a generalized linear mixed-effects model. Results: With increasing age and deterioration of health status, the recommendation for chemotherapy with trastuzumab decreased (P<0.0001 for both). In contrast, recommendation for trastuzumab alone or no therapy increased with advancing age (P<0.0001 for both) and deteriorating health status (P<0.0035 and P=0.059, respectively). Chemotherapy alone was not frequently recommended, irrespective of age or health status. Conclusions: Given the relative dearth of evidence-based data for adjuvant treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer in older adults of varying health, oncologists recommend a diverse array of therapeutic approaches for this subgroup. Increasing age and declining health status lead to more frequent recommendation of trastuzumab alone or no therapy, and less frequent recommendation of chemotherapy with trastuzumab.

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