Early circulating tumor cell dynamics were associated with overall survival in patients with metastatic breast cancer, according to a meta-analysis presented during General Session 4 at SABCS 20 on Friday, Dec. 11.

In the same way the pandemic couldn’t stop the 43rd annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, the founders of GRASP are determined to continue the program they launched at SABCS 19.

The Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long San Antonio School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.The Long School of Medicine designates this live activity up to a maximum of 46.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.

Today is the final day of SABCS 20, but just in case you missed something, it’s not your final chance to view all of the great science presented this week. SABCS registrants will have exclusive on-demand access to SABCS 20 programs until March 13, 2021.

Just as no single breast cancer treatment is appropriate for all patients, no single prevention strategy is appropriate for all. Prophylactic mastectomy is highly effective in preventing breast cancer but is not often acceptable.

A normal breast cell in an 80-year-old woman has accumulated about 1,000 mutations while a breast cancer cell has about 5,000 mutations. It is not clear what factors might trigger the more rapid accumulations of mutations that are seen in tumor cells.

One of the enduring problems in treating ER+ breast cancer is its persistent tendency to recur. HER+ and triple negative breast cancers usually recur within the first few years after treatment, but ER+ cancers have a steady rate of relapse over decades.

Recovering from breast cancer means more than good clinical outcomes. The overarching goal is good quality of life, which means balancing clinical outcomes with treatment toxicities while preserving a positive body image, good sexual health and, for patients who want it, the opportunity for biological children.

After a median follow-up of 5.1 years, among women with lymph node-positive early-stage breast cancer and a recurrence score of 25 or lower who received adjuvant endocrine therapy with or without chemotherapy, postmenopausal patients had no added benefit from chemotherapy.

Among patients with breast cancer treated with radiotherapy, under-recognition of symptoms was common in reports of pain, pruritus, edema, and fatigue, with younger patients and Black patients having significantly increased odds of symptom under-recognition.