BIOMODULATORY APPROACHES TO CHEMOTHERAPY-RESISTANT BREAST-CANCER

Breast cancer that has become resistant to first-line or second-line c hemotherapy is a very difficult clinical situation, often involving a woman who is still relatively healthy. It is in this setting in other diseases that investigational treatments have been attempted, includin g biological approaches. Even if the tumour is still responsive to che motherapy given at high dose-intensity, the addition of a complementar y strategy may well improve the long-term outlook for many patients. I n the near future, anti-angiogenesis strategies will be available as a treatment for many or most solid tumours, and ultimately, replacement of oncogenes will be the method of choice for fundamentally attacking a cancer at its source. Presently, recruitment of the patient's immun e response as an important ally of chemotherapy must not be overlooked .