New drug approved for breast cancer

The FDA approved a new breast cancer chemotherapy today for metastatic disease. Halaven (eribulin), which we covered from the annual ASCO meeting this past summer, made headlines when a phase 3 study showed it extended survival by two and a half months in patients with locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer that had been treated with multiple therapies. Researchers noted at the meeting that the Halaven study marked the first time a single agent had helped this patient population live longer. The most common side effects of Halaven included fatigue, low white blood cell count and peripheral neuropathy.You can read more about the approval from the FDA here. We will also be covering the new drug in CURE's upcoming breast cancer supplement later next month.