Practice-Changing Perspectives regarding Systemic Therapy in Early Breast Cancer: Opinions of German Experts regarding the 17th St. Gallen International Consensus Conference

Breast Care (Basel). 2022 Jun;17(3):336-345. doi: 10.1159/000517501. Epub 2022 Apr 8.

Abstract

The general topic of this year's 17th St. Gallen (SG) International Consensus Conference on the treatment of patients with early breast cancer (SG-BCC) was "Customizing local and systemic therapies for women with early breast cancer." This topic considers that each treatment decision must also consider the cancer-specific situation of the individual patient. This year, the votes of the SG-BCC were again discussed taking into account the multidisciplinary German S3 Guidelines and the recommendations of the Breast Cancer Working Group of the AGO (Arbeitsgemeinschaft Gynäkologische Onkologie; AGO Mamma). As the international panel of the SG-BCC consists of experts from different countries, the votes do represent an international cross-section of opinions. Therefore, it is useful to discuss the voting results with respect to the German evidence-based treatment guidelines. This publication focuses mainly on systemic treatment.

Keywords: (Neo)adjuvant systemic treatment; Early breast cancer; St. Gallen Consensus 2021; Targeted therapy.