Surrogate Markers and Survival in Advanced Breast Cancer
Author Information
Author(s): Hackshaw A, Knight A, Barrett-Lee P, Leonard R
Primary Institution: Cancer Research UK & UCL Cancer Trials Centre
Hypothesis
Surrogate markers may help predict the effects of first-line treatment on survival in women with advanced breast cancer.
Conclusion
Time to progression is a useful surrogate marker for predicting survival in women receiving first-line anthracycline chemotherapy.
Supporting Evidence
- There was a significant linear association between survival and complete or partial tumour response.
- Time to progression explained 56% of the variability in treatment effect on survival.
- Surrogate markers like tumour response and progressive disease were associated with survival.
Takeaway
Doctors can use certain signs, like how long it takes for cancer to get worse, to guess how well a treatment will work for women with advanced breast cancer.
Methodology
A meta-regression analysis of 42 randomized trials was conducted to assess the relationship between surrogate markers and survival.
Potential Biases
Potential biases from the use of summary data and the inability to assess the impact of second-line therapies.
Limitations
The analysis was based on summary data from trials, which limits the ability to predict survival for individual patients.
Participant Demographics
All participants were women with advanced breast cancer who had received no previous chemotherapy for advanced disease.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.0001
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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