Adjuvant Chemotherapy Guided by a 21-Gene Expression Assay in Breast Cancer Paper Example

Introduction

The news article comes from "The New England Journal of Medicine" and the title of the journal in the discussion is "Adjuvant chemotherapy guided by a 21-gene expression assay in breast cancer." authored by Sparano et al., 2018. The article seeks to assess whether chemotherapy is always the answer when it comes to the treatment of breast cancer. The article argues that chemo is not always the best option as identified by TAILORx study that has shown that 70% of the women who have the prevalent breast cancer do not need chemo. The article tries to explain the enormous impact of the TAILORx study on breast cancer treatment (Sparano et al., 2018). The participants of the study comprised of women especially those who are 50 years older and postmenopausal. The research utilized t-tests for as their statistical technique to come up with the findings. The participants in the TAILORx study were women with breast cancer which aimed at identifying different treatments that are more appropriate for the various cases of breast cancer. The correlation tests were used in the study to differentiate between different breast cancers and the impact of chemotherapy on the patients (Chi ST. Joseph Health, 2018).

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

In the correlation test, different categories of women were treated differently of breast cancer with patients who tested based on the Oncotype DX Breast Cancer Assay which created three categories of treatment based on the premise of the possibility that the breast cancer would recur. The lowest score (0-10) meant that there was a low chance of cancer recurring and the patients were treated using surgery and hormone therapy, the intermediate score (11-25) required surgery and chemotherapy and the highest score which was from (25-100) required surgery and both chemotherapy and hormone therapy (Sparano et al., 2018).

Anova test was used to assess the difference between the survival rates of intermediate level patients under the combination of both chemotherapy and hormone therapy and the treatment using hormone therapy alone and the study found out the survival rate difference between the two treatments were not statistically significant in which the conclusion was that chemotherapy does not add value in the treatment of breast cancer in the intermediate level (Chi ST. Joseph Health, 2018).

Summary of the Findings

The study findings indicate that almost 70% of women with common breast cancer do not require any chemotherapy. The study found that the treatment with hormone therapy and chemotherapy after the surgical procedure is not very valuable than treatment with only hormone psychotherapy especially for women with hormone receptor (HR) - positive, axillary lymph node-negative breast cancer, and HER2-negative (Sparano et al., 2018). Although some benefits existent to some women who are of 50 years or young, the study found that chemo-endocrine therapy and adjuvant endocrine therapy had related efficiency in women with HER2-negative, hormone receptor-positive, axillary node-negative breast cancer and who have a midrange 21-gene recurrence score.

Limitations of the Study

Despite that fact that the study did not identify patients who never benefited from adjuvant chemotherapy, 16 % of those enrolled was too noted to have a recurrence score of 10 or less. Markedly, 70% of those women enrolled were found to have a mid-score range of 11 to 25. Therefore, these results do not offer clear information concerning whether the stated subset of women can be spared of chemotherapy.

Application of the Study Results to Real Life

The result of the study can is highly applicable in real life situations. The results are meaningful to most people especially the medical practitioners who have specialized in breast cancer, as they will help in informing them regarding the various treatment decisions available for women with initial-stage breast cancer. The results offer high-quality data to many clinicians to inform modified treatment approvals for women concerning breast cancer. The study results help many women to avoid any unnecessary treatments that are likely to cause severe sides effects as well as a financial burden.

How the Title Reflect the Original Findings of the Study

The title of the article shows a clear reflection of the findings of the original study since it illustrates and describes the impacts that the investigation has on b the treatment of breast cancer. The article gives the reasons why chemotherapy is not the only answer and solution to breast cancer treatment. The study was conducted for two intermediate ranges of two separate groups of women where the surgery for one group was done using both chemotherapy and hormone therapy and the second group could only receive hormone therapy alone. The doctor's conclusion indicated that chemotherapy did not add any benefits to women who had scored in the intermediate range of 11-25 (Chi ST. Joseph Health, 2018). Therefore, the title of the article, which is on how, and the reasons why the TAILORx study could have a massive impact on breast cancer treatment reflects the findings of the original research.

Additional Information to the Newspaper Article

Some of the additional information that I could add to the newspaper article would be the methods and statistical analysis used in the study. The reason is that they will give more information regarding the participants and the methods used in conducting the survey as well as the analysis used in coming up with the study findings. The techniques will also help in showing whether the information provided by the participants was accurate and whether their willingness to conduct the study was according to their will. Statistical analysis would provide information on how the accuracy and completeness of the collected data. Similarly, I would add more information concerning the health and financial benefits of the study to women.

Reflection on the Project

Breast cancer has been an issue affecting many women. However, after this study was conducted, I believe that it offered original information to women who were worried about the treatment of breast cancer. I think that doing this project was important, as it has helped women up to date. This project is essential, and it was worthy conducting since it contributed to the information regarding how women with breast cancer should be treated. Undertaking this project was helpful and beneficial to many clinicians involved in the treatment of breast cancer in women as it helps in giving the direction of the best method to use in the treatment of breast cancer. Further, I believe that this project will assist in improving the lives of many women who currently have breast cancer.

The project offers a guide concerning cancer care and treatment through various tests that help in guiding on the treatment plans (Brock, Lester, & Iorgulescu, 2018). Equally, I believe that the trial has encouraged many people in the medical and scientific community to see precession medicine in a different perspective which is aimed at exploring the best treatments targeted at creating the right patient populations. The central aim of the study was to ensure the wellbeing of people with or without breast cancer. This study will be necessary for people especially women as it shows the benefits of forgoing chemotherapy treatment as the only form of treating cancer. I concur with the survey that chemotherapy is not the only option when it comes to diagnosis of breast cancer. Equally, I believe this study is essential, as it will help women in avoiding unnecessary treatments that have severe health effects and financial burden for women. Overall, the TAILORx study has helped most cancer patients by influencing their future treatment plans.

References

Brock, J., Lester, S., & Iorgulescu, J. B. (2018, March). Filling the TAILORx gap: survival benefits from chemotherapy using data from the NCDB. In MODERN PATHOLOGY (Vol. 31, pp. 52-53). 75 Varick ST, 9TH Flr, New York, NY 10013-1917 USA: Nature Publishing Group.

Chi ST. Joseph Health. (2018). A New study could have a massive impact on breast cancer treatment: Here is why. The Mercury News. Retrieved from https://www.mercurynews.com/sponsorcontent/?prx_t=ZDgEAYVstArLEPA&&ntv_oc=352

Sparano, J. A., Gray, R. J., Makower, D. F., Pritchard, K. I., Albain, K. S., Hayes, D. F., ... & Lively, T. (2018). Adjuvant chemotherapy guided by a 21-gene expression assay in breast cancer. New England Journal of Medicine.