In addition to local therapy, such as surgery or radiation, your care team may recommend systemic therapy options, including those listed below.
Hormone therapy
Hormone therapy is a form of systemic therapy that works to add, block or remove hormones from the body to slow or stop the growth of cancer cells. The two most common types of breast cancer hormone therapy are selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) and aromatase inhibitors. Usually the last step in treatment, this therapy is taken in pill form over the course of multiple years and has been found to reduce breast cancer recurrence by up to 50 percent.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy may be used to treat your cancer if you have locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer, if you’ve been diagnosed with some rarer types of breast cancer or if you have a form of breast cancer with a high likelihood of recurrence. Your medical oncologist may recommend chemotherapy before you undergo breast cancer surgery or after surgery.
- Neoadjuvant (or upfront) chemotherapy: Chemotherapy given before surgery, called neoadjuvant chemotherapy, has many advantages. These include the fact that treatment can begin sooner, that it can reduce the size of the tumor and that it can provide prognostic information to guide the overall treatment plan.
- Adjuvant chemotherapy: Adjuvant chemotherapy is given following surgery to reduce the risk of cancer recurrence.
Targeted therapy
In addition to chemotherapy, targeted therapy (also known as biological response drugs) may be recommended for treating breast tumors that express the HER2 protein, which plays a role in the growth of some types of breast cancer. Your care team can test whether your cancer cells express the HER2 protein. If they do, they may recommend targeted medications to help shut the protein down and cut off the cancer cells’ energy supply. Other targeted therapies include PARP inhibitors and CDK46 inhibitors.
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy, which uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer, is a promising treatment for some types of breast cancer, including advanced and invasive forms of the disease. One common immunotherapy drug prescribed for breast cancer is pembrolizumab, which targets a protein on immune cells of the body and boosts their response against the cancer.
Innovative advances in cancer treatments may be available to you
At City of Hope, we’re committed to bringing our patients new advances in cancer treatments. One way we do that is by offering clinical trials that may lead to new treatments and offer patients options that may not otherwise be available to them.
We’re available now to listen and answer your questions.
Care at City of Hope is centered on you, the patient. Your cancer care team will help you understand the wide range of innovative treatment options available to you, so you and your loved ones can make informed decisions about the road ahead. We also ensure that you have access to supportive care services designed to help manage your emotional and physical health during and after treatment.
We’re here to help you make informed decisions about which treatments are right for you.
Learn more about cancer care and your options at City of Hope
Cancer, the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells, develops when the body’s normal control mechanism stops functioning correctly.
Learn more about cancer, its categories and its stagesCity of Hope’s breast cancer care team uses state-of-the-art diagnostic technology to accurately locate and stage your cancer, which allows us to develop a personalized treatment plan for every patient.
Learn about mammography, imaging, genetic tests and moreSurgery and radiation are sometimes called "local therapy," because they treat the cancer directly, at the site where it is found. Other treatments, such as chemotherapy or hormone therapy, are called "systemic therapy," since they are not usually delivered to the cancer site, but to the whole body.
Learn about breast cancer treatment optionsOur breast surgeons have expertise in performing surgical procedures for all types of breast cancer, and our team works closely with reconstructive plastic surgeons to offer the most innovative breast reconstruction techniques for patients during as well as after cancer surgery.
Learn about the innovative surgical options for breast conservation, removal and reconstructionRadiation therapy is used after surgery to kill any remaining cancer cells and help prevent the cancer from coming back. It may also be used to provide relief from pain and other symptoms of cancer that has spread to other parts of the body.
Learn about the innovative radiation therapies that destroy cancer cells, such as 3-D conformal radiation therapyIn addition to using leading-edge technology to treat your cancer, your personalized treatment plan includes evidence-informed supportive care services, designed to help you stay stronger and more comfortable both during and after treatment.
Learn about nutritional support, oncology rehabilitation and other evidence-informed supportive care options