Breast Cancer Trials

Breast Cancer Trials is committed to exploring and finding better treatments for people affected by breast cancer through clinical trials research. We are a group of world-leading breast cancer researchers based in Australia and New Zealand, supported by a team of professional staff who manage our clinical trials and raise the money we need to do the work we do. Our research has improved the treatment of breast cancer, led to changes in the way breast cancer is managed, and saved the lives of millions of people affected by breast cancer since our inception in 1978. Our goal is for breast cancer patients to live better, to live longer, and to never die from breast cancer. The work we do and the decisions we make serve the common good of all people who are affected with breast cancer, as we strive every day to make the world a better place. Organisations don’t make things happen; people do. Are you one of these people? Find out more: https://lnkd.in/g3ZtRBP9

Breast Cancer Trials wishes everyone a very Merry Christmas! ❤️ Thank you to all of our amazing researchers, trial participants and supporters, for your ongoing generosity and hard work to save and improve the lives of everyone diagnosed with breast cancer. This Christmas be kind to yourself and enjoy a wonderful day! 🎄

Season’s Greetings! Thank you for all of your support throughout 2024. We wish you all a very happy holiday season and a joyful New Year, from everyone at Breast Cancer Trials ❤️.

A heartfelt thank you to all of you, our amazing supporters. Your generosity and dedication are helping to make groundbreaking strides in breast cancer trials research. Your incredible support this year has brought us closer to ensuring that no more lives are cut short by breast cancer — thank you!

OPTIMA aims to find out if using a test called Prosigna, can help make safe and accurate decisions about whether or not chemotherapy treatment is needed for patients with ER-positive, HER2-negative early breast cancer. "We know that we often are giving chemotherapy to women who don't get a benefit from it, so OPTIMA is trying to see if a test on someone's breast cancer tumour can work out whether they might be able to do just as well without having to receive chemotherapy." - OPTIMA Study Chair, Belinda Kiely For more information about this important research visit: https://lnkd.in/gmzfq5mt

Neoadjuvant treatments are used to reduce the size of a tumour before surgery and may result in less invasive surgery for patients. They can involve everything from chemotherapy to targeted hormone treatments. Deciding on a treatment can often feel overwhelming — that’s why we’ve created our Neoadjuvant Patient Decision Aid for women who have recently been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. Try it out today! https://myneoguide.com/

In one of our latest podcast episodes, Dr Deme Karikios discusses the importance of quality-of-life outcomes and looking beyond survival rates when discussing treatment success. “I think discussing what matters to you with your treating doctor is probably the best thing, because then they can tailor the treatment to your needs.” Dr Karikios is a medical oncologist working at the Nepean Hospital in Sydney. He has a clinical and research interest in thoracic and gastrointestinal malignancies. Find out more: https://lnkd.in/grhWkqNj

The OLIO clinical trial aims to find out if the addition of olaparib, or a combination of olaparib and durvalumab, given together with standard chemotherapy, can help to control cancer in pre-menopausal women with HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. Young patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer are often treated with hormone therapy and chemotherapy and have a 2-3x increased risk of breast cancer recurrence over their lifetime. It is believed that targeted treatments in addition to chemotherapy could improve patient outcomes for young, early breast cancer patients. Through a combination of these treatments, we hope that this will deliver an improved approach to the treatment of breast cancer in young women who have a high risk of relapse and will improve patient outcomes. To find out more about this important research visit: https://lnkd.in/gvrbHYT3

Radiation therapy given together with hormonal treatment, is currently the standard treatment for women who are diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer after they have had breast cancer surgery. However, research suggests that the benefits of radiation treatment may vary quite a lot from woman to woman. It also may cause short-term and long-term side effects. The EXPERT clinical trial aims to identify women with low-risk cancer who can safely avoid treatment with radiation therapy and its associated side effects. Find out more about this important research: https://lnkd.in/d9VTXqpG

In one of our latest podcast episodes, Professor Sunil Lakhani discusses ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), and how it relates to breast cancer. “Once you have a diagnosis of DCIS, you’ve therefore had the disease, and knowing that you’ve had the disease is important so that you can have regular screening where you will hopefully identify if any recurrence takes place. But the important thing is not to be over-anxious about it because it hasn’t broken out and become invasive and therefore it’s manageable and it’s highly unlikely that a very big harm will come to women with a diagnosis of DCIS.” Professor Sunil Lakhani is the Chair of the Breast Cancer Trials Board of Directors. He is a clinical diagnostic pathologist and also heads up a research team at the University of Queensland, comprising scientists and clinicians ensuring a translational focus to the program. Find out more: https://lnkd.in/gEVApraj