# Sacituzumab govitecan and trastuzumab deruxtecan: two new antibody-drug conjugates in the breast cancer treatment landscape

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-trastuzumab-deruxtecan-tnbc-esmo-open-2021/  
OnCo record `paper-trastuzumab-deruxtecan-tnbc-esmo-open-2021` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Review on Trastuzumab deruxtecan in Triple-negative breast cancer, in ESMO Open (2021), one of the most cited Europe PMC records with Trastuzumab deruxtecan in its title.

## Summary

Background: Two new antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) containing a topoisomerase I inhibitor payload have recently emerged in the breast cancer (BC) treatment landscape. Sacituzumab govitecan-hziy (SG) is a first-in-class anti-trophoblast cell-surface antigen 2 ADC approved for pretreated metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC) and trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd) gained approval for human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2)-positive advanced BC (aBC). We aim to provide a contemporary review and the current clinical trial landscape of SG and T-DXd in BC.

Materials and methods: We conducted a literature search from Medline database through PubMed, major conference proceedings [abstracts from European Society for Medical Oncology (Breast) Congress, American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting, San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium] and ClinicalTrials.gov with search terms 'sacituzumab govitecan', 'IMMU-132', 'trastuzumab deruxtecan' and 'DS-8201a' up to 21 March 2021.

Results: We assessed 293 records for eligibility, of which 153 were included in this review after screening and exclusion. For SG, efficacy and safety data are available from a phase III trial in pretreated mTNBC and from a phase I/II basket study in mTNBC and hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative aBC. Thirteen trials with pending primary analysis are ongoing with SG as single agent or in combination, of which 11 are enrolling (2/11 in the early setting). For T-DXd, efficacy/safety data are available as single agent in pretreated HER2-positive (phase Ib and phase II) and in HER2-low aBC (phase Ib), and in combination with nivolumab in HER2-low/positive aBC (phase Ib). Of 23 ongoing trials with T-DXd, 12 are open for enrollment and 3 phase III trials have completed recruitment. The distinct safety profiles of both drugs and their management are discussed.

Conclusion: Given their robust single-agent activity, SG and T-DXd are expected to substantially impact treatment standards, both in and far beyond the currently approved indications. Several trials are investigating new treatment settings for both drugs, including a transition to earlier lines and combinations with other anticancer treatments such as immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Indexed on Europe PMC as PubMed record 34225076 (DOI 10.1016/j.esmoop.2021.100204). Its title names Trastuzumab deruxtecan and its text names Triple-negative breast cancer; PubMed types it as a review (review-article, Review). It was matched automatically to the idea "AI quantification of HER2-low and HER2-ultralow" and no figure has been checked by an editor.

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-09-22
- Tags: europepmc-ingest
- Journal: ESMO Open
- Year: 2021
- DOI: 10.1016/j.esmoop.2021.100204
- Authors: Adams E, Wildiers H, Neven P, et al.
- What it means: One of the most cited reviews Europe PMC returns for Trastuzumab deruxtecan in Triple-negative breast cancer, so it is a natural first reading for anyone weighing the idea it is linked from. The record was linked automatically by title and abstract; read the abstract above and the paper itself before relying on any figure.
- Caveats: Matched by Trastuzumab deruxtecan in the title and Triple-negative breast cancer in the title or abstract of the Europe PMC record; the summary reproduces the record's abstract and no figure has been verified against the full paper.; A review summarises other studies; the primary reports it cites are the evidence.

## Sources

- ESMO Open 2021: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esmoop.2021.100204
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34225076/
- Europe PMC: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/34225076

## Connected records

- journals: [ESMO Open](https://onco.cc/journals/esmo-open/)
- ideas: [AI quantification of HER2-low and HER2-ultralow](https://onco.cc/ideas/idea-ai-her2-low-scoring/)

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