Molecular Mechanisms of Drug Resistance in Breast Cancer

Dear Colleagues,

Metastatic breast carcinoma is the second most common cause of death due to cancer and remains incurable. Recently, major advances have been made in the treatment landscape of breast cancer. Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors, CDK4/6i, have revolutionized estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer therapy. The introduction of two major antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs), trastuzumab deruxtecan and sacituzumab govitecan, has resulted in significant improvements in overall survival in all three subtypes of metastatic breast cancer, and in luminal and triple-negative metastatic breast cancer (TNBC), respectively. The success of immune checkpoint therapies in TNBC has emphasized the importance of the immune system in breast cancer. Despite these advances, resistance to therapy and recurrence/metastasis resulting in death are still a clinical reality. The absence of robust biomarkers for patient selection and inadequate understanding of resistance mechanisms are major barriers to efficacious therapeutics. The cross-talk and heterogeneity of the tumor–tumor microenvironment further add to the complexity of understanding the mechanisms of resistance. There is a crucial need for novel approaches to dissect the mechanisms of drug resistance and alleviate morbidity and mortality in breast cancer. This Special Issue will discuss the evolving landscape of breast cancer therapies and focus on new discoveries as potential mechanisms of resistance to these therapies.

Dr. Yesim Gokmen-Polar
Guest Editor

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• breast cancer
• mechanism of resistance
• targeted therapy resistance
• ER+
• HER2
• TNBC
• tumor microenvironment
• recurrence
• metastasis
• tumor evasion