For women with advanced breast cancer resistant to hormonal therapy, combining everolimus and exemestane improves progression-free survival (PFS) by nearly 7 months compared with exemestane alone, according to phase 3 trial results reported at the European Multi - disciplinary Cancer Conference. The Breast Cancer Trials of Oral Everolimus (BOLERO) randomized 724 patients in 24 countries who had been treated previously with letrozole or anastrozole. Previous therapy also included tamoxifen, fulvestrant, and chemotherapy. The trial was stopped early when interim analysis revealed that patients receiving the combination regimen did not experience tumor progression for nearly 11 months, whereas patients receiving exemestane alone progress after approximately 4 months.
