# Differential benefit of adjuvant everolimus according to endocrine therapy backbone in the randomized UNIRAD trial

## TL;DR

The UNIRAD trial found that adding everolimus to tamoxifen may improve outcomes for high-risk premenopausal breast cancer patients.

## Contribution

The study suggests that everolimus may provide additional benefit when combined with tamoxifen in premenopausal patients.

## Key findings

- Premenopausal patients treated with tamoxifen and everolimus showed improved 3-year disease-free survival.
- Early discontinuation of treatment was less frequent in tamoxifen-treated patients.
- Tamoxifen alone may be suboptimal for high-risk premenopausal breast cancer patients.

## Abstract

The randomized, double-blind UNIRAD trial evaluating the addition of 2 years of everolimus to endocrine therapy in patients with high-risk, early luminal breast cancer failed to demonstrate a benefit. We report the subgroup analyses.

We randomly assigned 1278 patients in a 1 : 1 ratio to receive 2 years of placebo or everolimus, added to endocrine therapy for up to 4 years after initiation. Randomization was stratified by endocrine therapy agent, prior adjuvant versus neoadjuvant therapy, progesterone receptor expression, and lymph node involvement. Subgroup analyses by each stratification factor were pre-specified. Post hoc analyses were carried out according to menopausal status and age. Treatment adherence was also analyzed.

We observed a limited trend toward more favorable prognostic features in tamoxifen-treated patients, with more frequent estrogen receptor-positive/progesterone receptor-positive tumors (88.5% versus 84.1%, P = 0.026) and less frequent pN2-positive status (39.8% versus 46.0%, P = 0.032). In premenopausal women, we observed a numerical benefit of everolimus: 3-year disease-free survival was 86% in the placebo group and 90% in the everolimus group (hazard ratio 0.76, 95% confidence interval 0.43-1.34). In premenopausal patients treated with tamoxifen (n = 153; 12.3%), we observed an even stronger trend in favor of everolimus as 3-year DFS was 84% in the placebo group and 91% in the everolimus group (hazard ratio 0.54, 95% confidence interval 0.28-1.02). Early discontinuation of either everolimus or placebo was less frequent in the tamoxifen group than in the aromatase inhibitor group: 48.0% versus 56.9% (P = 0.028).

The present post hoc analyses generate hypotheses regarding the interaction between menopausal status, tamoxifen, and everolimus in patients with high-risk, ER-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2-negative early breast cancer. They suggest that tamoxifen alone is an underpowered endocrine treatment in high-risk premenopausal patients.

Graphical abstract

•In the UNIRAD trial, a benefit of everolimus when added to tamoxifen in high-risk early luminal breast cancer was suggested.•This trend was most pronounced in premenopausal patients (3-year DFS: 84% versus 91%, hazard ratio 0.54).•Early discontinuation was less common in patients treated with tamoxifen.•Tamoxifen alone may be a suboptimal adjuvant therapy in premenopausal women with high-risk early luminal breast cancer.

In the UNIRAD trial, a benefit of everolimus when added to tamoxifen in high-risk early luminal breast cancer was suggested.

This trend was most pronounced in premenopausal patients (3-year DFS: 84% versus 91%, hazard ratio 0.54).

Early discontinuation was less common in patients treated with tamoxifen.

Tamoxifen alone may be a suboptimal adjuvant therapy in premenopausal women with high-risk early luminal breast cancer.