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Review
. 2015 Feb 9;27(2):163-75.
doi: 10.1016/j.ccell.2015.01.001.

Emerging strategies for treating brain metastases from breast cancer

David P Kodack  1 , Vasileios Askoxylakis  1 , Gino B Ferraro  1 , Dai Fukumura  1 , Rakesh K Jain  2
Affiliations
Review

Emerging strategies for treating brain metastases from breast cancer

David P Kodack et al. Cancer Cell. .

Abstract

Brain metastasis is an end stage in breast cancer progression. Traditional treatment options have minimal efficacy, and overall survival is on the order of months. The incidence of brain metastatic disease is increasing with the improved management of systemic disease and prolongation of survival. Unfortunately, the targeted therapies that control systemic disease have diminished efficacy against brain lesions. There are reasons to be optimistic, however, as emerging therapies have shown promise in preclinical and early clinical settings. This review discusses recent advances in breast cancer brain metastasis therapy and potential approaches for successful treatment.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Schematic of notable targets of BCBM formation identified in preclinical studies (see Table 1)
Molecules are categorized based on the stage of the metastatic cascade in which it is involved. Brain-tropic circulating tumors cells (CTC) may express a particular signature, such as EpCAM-/HER2+/EGFR+/HPSE+/Notch1+ (Zhang et al., 2013). While drug delivery into brain metastatic lesions is compromised by the BTB, the ease of access is greater than in the normal brain (with an intact BBB). Methods used to enhance drug delivery are also mentioned.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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