Breast Cancer Clinical Trials in Birmingham, AL

Most physicians still use a one-size-fits-all approach to breast screening in which all women, regardless of their personal history, family history or genetics (except BRCA carriers) are recommended to have annual mammograms starting at age 40. Mammograms benefit women by detecting cancers early when they are easier to treat, but they are not perfect. Recent news stories have discussed some of the potential harms: large numbers of positive results that cause stressful recalls for additional mammograms and biopsies. With the current screening approach, half of the women who undergo annual screening for ten years will have at least one false positive biopsy. Potentially more important are cancer diagnoses for growths that might never come to clinical attention if left alone (called "overdiagnosis"). This can lead to unnecessary treatment. Even more concerning is evidence that up to 20% of breast cancers detected today may fall into the category of "overdiagnosis." This study compares annual screening with a risk-based breast cancer screening schedule, based upon each woman's personal risk of breast cancer. The investigators have designed the study to be inclusive of all, so that even women who might be nervous about being randomly assigned to receive a particular type of care (a procedure that is typical in clinical studies) will still be able to participate by choosing the type of care they receive. For participants in the risk-based screening arm, each woman will receive a personal risk assessment that includes her family and medical history, breast density measurement and tests for genes (mutations and variations) linked to the development of breast cancer. Women who have the highest personal risk of developing breast cancer will receive more frequent screening, while women with a lower personal risk would receive less frequent screening. No woman will be screened less than is recommended by the USPSTF breast cancer screening guidelines. If this study is successful, women will gain a realistic understanding of their personal risk of breast cancer as well as strategies to reduce their risk, and fewer women will suffer from the anxiety of false positive mammograms and unnecessary biopsies. The investigators believe this study has the potential to transform breast cancer screening in America. Read Less

This phase II ComboMATCH treatment trial compares the usual treatment alone (fulvestrant) to using binimetinib plus the usual treatment in patients with hormone receptor positive breast cancer that has spread from where it first started to other places in the body (metastatic) and has an NF1 genetic change. Fulvestrant is a hormonal therapy that binds to estrogen receptors in tumor cells, resulting in estrogen receptor destruction and decreased estrogen binding, which may inhibit the growth of estrogen-sensitive tumor cells. Binimetinib is a targeted therapy that may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. The addition of binimetinib to fulvestrant in breast cancers with an NF1 genetic change could increase the percentage of tumors that shrink as well as lengthen the time that the tumors remain stable (without progression) as compared to fulvestrant alone. Read Less

The purpose of the study is to see if using an investigational drug called [18F]FMISO with PET/MRI imaging can help monitor and predict the effect of trastuzumab (Herceptin) on chemotherapy in patients diagnosed with advanced HER2 positive breast cancer. This study is for imaging purposes only and is not a treatment study. The results of this study will not change a patient's clinical treatment plan but it may help physicians and researchers better understand how best to treat patients with breast cancer in the future. Read Less

This ComboMATCH patient screening trial is the gateway to a coordinated set of clinical trials to study cancer treatment directed by genetic testing. Patients with solid tumors that have spread to nearby tissue or lymph nodes (locally advanced) or have spread to other places in the body (advanced) and have progressed on at least one line of standard systemic therapy or have no standard treatment that has been shown to prolong overall survival may be candidates for these trials. Genetic tests look at the unique genetic material (genes) of patients' tumor cells. Patients with some genetic changes or abnormalities (mutations) may benefit from treatment that targets that particular genetic mutation. ComboMATCH is designed to match patients to a treatment that may work to control their tumor and may help doctors plan better treatment for patients with locally advanced or advanced solid tumors. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to further advance the ability to practice personalized medicine by learning which new drug agents are most effective with which types of breast cancer tumors and by learning more about which early indicators of response (tumor analysis prior to surgery via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images along with tissue and blood samples) are predictors of treatment success. Read Less

This is a Phase III open-label study to assess if camizestrant improves outcomes compared to standard endocrine therapy in patients with ER+/HER2 - early breast cancer with intermediate or high risk for disease recurrence who completed definitive locoregional therapy (with or without chemotherapy) and standard adjuvant endocrine therapy (ET) for at least 2 years and up to 5 years. The planned duration of treatment in either arm of the study is 60 months. Read Less

This trial studies how well paclitaxel, trastuzumab, and pertuzumab work in eliminating further chemotherapy after surgery in patients with HER2-positive stage II-IIIa breast cancer who have no cancer remaining at surgery (either in the breast or underarm lymph nodes) after pre-operative chemotherapy and HER2-targeted therapy. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Trastuzumab and pertuzumab are both a form of "targeted therapy" because they work by attaching themselves to specific molecules (receptors) on the surface of tumor cells, known as HER2 receptors. When these drugs attach to HER2 receptors, the signals that tell the cells to grow are blocked and the tumor cell may be marked for destruction by the body's immune system. Giving paclitaxel, trastuzumab, and pertuzumab may enable fewer chemotherapy drugs to be given without compromising patient outcomes compared to the usual treatment. Read Less

The primary goal of this project is to determine the effects of exercise on the gut microbiome in breast cancer survivors and determine how these changes may relate to psychosocial symptoms such as fatigue. Read Less

This Phase III, randomized, open-label, multicenter study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of giredestrant plus everolimus compared with the physician's choice of endocrine therapy plus everolimus in participants with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer who have had previous treatment with cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitors (CDK4/6is) and endocrine therapy, either in the locally advanced/metastatic or the adjuvant setting. Read Less

This phase III trial studies how well trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) and tucatinib work in preventing breast cancer from coming back (relapsing) in patients with high risk, HER2 positive breast cancer. T-DM1 is a monoclonal antibody, called trastuzumab, linked to a chemotherapy drug, called DM1. Trastuzumab is a form of targeted therapy because it attaches to specific molecules (receptors) on the surface of cancer cells, known as HER2 receptors, and delivers DM1 to kill them. Tucatinib may stop the growth of tumor cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. Giving T-DM1 and tucatinib may work better in preventing breast cancer from relapsing in patients with HER2 positive breast cancer compared to T-DM1 alone. Read Less

The phase III trial compares the effect of pembrolizumab to observation for the treatment of patients with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer who achieved a pathologic complete response after preoperative chemotherapy in combination with pembrolizumab. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. This trial may help researchers determine if observation will result in the same risk of cancer coming back as pembrolizumab after surgery in triple-negative breast cancer patients who achieve pathologic complete response after preoperative chemotherapy with pembrolizumab. Read Less

This study is a Phase I/II study evaluating the safety and effectiveness of focused radiation therapy (radiosurgery) together with olaparib, followed by immunotherapy, for patients with brain metastases from triple negative or BRCA-mutated breast cancers. This study will have a Phase I portion in which subjects will be enrolled based on 3+3 dose escalation rules. Three dose levels of olaparib will be studied. Cycle 1 of study treatment will consist of Olaparib given twice daily concurrently with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). Olaparib will start one week prior to SRS and continue during and following SRS (1-5 fractions) for up to 28 days total. The number of doses of Olaparib will be dependent on how long it takes a subject to recover from SRS (ideally the subject will be off steroids, if they are required, at the start of Cycle 2, with exceptions outlined later in this section). Once the subject has recovered from SRS (based on investigator discretion) that will be considered the DLT period. Cycle 2 will be initiated with physician's choice systemic therapy and durvalumab. Cycle 2+ will equal 21 days. During Cycles 2 and 3, physician's choice systemic monotherapy will be given along with durvalumab per protocol. Each cycle will last 21 days. Imaging to evaluate intracranial and extracranial disease will be performed after Cycle 3, and subjects with response will continue with the systemic therapy and durvalumab until progression (intracranial or extracranial), unacceptable toxicity or death. Read Less