US Oncology Research Network Presents Clinical Studies at San Antonio Breast Cancer...( SAN ANTONIO Dec. 15 /- Two leading ca...),Health

SAN ANTONIO, Dec. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Two leading cancer physicians and researchers affiliated with US Oncology Research gave oral presentations at the 2008 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. Three others presented their research in poster presentations during the conference, which ran December 10 through 14.

Dr. Stephen Jones, US Oncology medical director and co-chair of its breast cancer research committee, presented findings on the largest of the three major trials comparing efficacy of an aromatase inhibitor/inactivatorversus tamoxifen as initial endocrine therapy. One objective of the study, titled "Results of the first planned analysis of the TEAM (tamoxifen exemestane adjuvant multicenter) prospective randomized Phase III trial in hormone sensitive postmenopausal early breast cancer," was to evaluate exemestane (E) compared to tamoxifen (T) as initial adjuvant endocrine therapy.

The analysis represents the first of two co-primary endpoints that will be reported from this trial. The first co-primary endpoint compares early events by measuring disease-free survival (DFS: disease progression or death) at 2.75 years in 9,775 patients randomized to initial therapy with either tamoxifen or AROMASIN.

The analysis of DFS at 2.75 years demonstrated an 11 percent reduction in the risk of DFS events in favor of AROMASIN (HR=0.89; 95% CI, 0.77-1.03). Relapse free survival and time to distant metastases, which are breast cancer endpoints, were statistically significant. A second planned analysis of DFS after five years of therapy is expected in late 2009. Results from TEAM trial sub-studies were also presented at the CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

"The TEAM trial is the largest aromatase inhibitor study ever to be done. The overall results are positive with an improvement in outcome measured by several parameters and a favorable safety profile for exemestane relative to a w
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