A Brief Review of Treatment Options for Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Patients with Triple-negative Breast Cancer

Abstract

The index patient is a 40-year-old female with a strong family history (breast cancer in mother and ovarian cancer in maternal aunt) who presented with a 3-month history of breast lump. On examination, she had a 4 cm breast lump and fixed axillary nodes. Positron-emission tomography-computed tomography reveals no other site of disease. Core biopsy reveals high-grade invasive ductal cancer with triple-negative phenotype. Germ line testing is positive for the pathogenic BRCA1 mutation. She is well-educated and requests you to offer her the best possible treatment that can maximize her chances of cure and minimize her chances of relapse. At the same time, she would not like to go through unnecessary toxicity unless treatment intensification can improve her disease-free survival (DFS)/overall survival (OS).