Commenting on both Dr. Baselga’s study in breast cancer and Dr. Liu’s study in ovarian cancer at the AACR press conference, Louis M. Weiner, MD, Director of the Georgetown University Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Washington, DC, said that antibody-drug conjugates “represent the fulfillment of the century-long dream of Paul Ehrlich—that of magic bullets for the treatment of cancer.”

“One of the main takeaway messages from Dr. Baselga’s study is that biomarkers no longer matter when you have drugs that work very well and overcome defense mechanisms of the tumor,” Dr. Weiner said.

The lessons of T-DM1 are not unique to that agent, but apply to other antibody-drug conjugates as well. “The therapeutic concept of antibody-drug conjugates makes sense. Target the antigen on the cell surface, and deliver powerful cytotoxic chemotherapy. The antibody delivers the potent drug that could not be given otherwise to exactly where it needs to go,” he elaborated. “This is where the field is heading for novel cytotoxics.” ■

Disclosure: Dr. Weiner reported no potential conflicts of interest.