15.8 percent lower risk for death seen with abemaciclib-ET versus ET in intent-to-treat population<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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THURSDAY, Oct. 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) — For patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive, human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2)-negative, node-positive, high-risk early breast cancer (EBC), adjuvant abemaciclib combined with endocrine therapy (ET) yields significantly improved overall survival (OS) compared with ET, according to a study published online Oct. 17 in the Annals of Oncology <\/em>to coincide with the annual meeting of the European Society for Medical Oncology, held from Oct. 17 to 21 in Berlin.<\/p>\n Stephen Johnston, Ph.D., from the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in London, and colleagues reported the primary OS results for patients with HR-positive, HER2-negative, node-positive, high-risk EBC receiving ET for at least five years with or without abemaciclib for two years. A total of 5,637 patients underwent randomization: 2,808 to abemaciclib-ET and 2,829 to ET.<\/p>\n The researchers found that abemaciclib-ET resulted in a 15.8 percent lower risk for death than ET in the intent-to-treat population, with a median follow-up of 76.2 months (hazard ratio, 0.842), meeting the prespecified boundary for significance. The seven-year OS was 86.8 and 85.0 percent with abemaciclib-ET and ET, respectively. Across prespecified subgroups, there was consistent OS benefit. Fewer patients in the abemaciclib-ET arm versus ET arm were living with metastatic disease (6.4 versus 9.4 percent). There were sustained improvements in invasive disease-free survival and distant relapse-free survival (hazard ratios, 0.734 and 0.746, respectively). Long-term safety data did not support concerns of delayed toxicities.<\/p>\n “For patients, survival is what matters most — and abemaciclib plus ET represents the first contemporary medicine in over two decades to deliver a clear improvement in overall survival in the adjuvant setting,” Johnston said in a statement.<\/p>\n Several authors reported financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry.<\/p>\n