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Hormone Therapy

Fulvestrant + Anastrozole for Breast Cancer

Phase 3
Waitlist Available
Research Sponsored by Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology
Eligibility Criteria Checklist
Specific guidelines that determine who can or cannot participate in a clinical trial
Must have
Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status 0-2
Postmenopausal, verified by: post bilateral surgical oophorectomy or no spontaneous menses ≥ 1 year or no menses for < 1 year with follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and estradiol levels in postmenopausal range, according to institutional standards
Must not have
Premenopausal status
Inflammatory breast cancer defined as clinically significant erythema of the breast and/or documented dermal lymphatic invasion
Timeline
Screening 3 weeks
Treatment Varies
Follow Up up to 5 years
Awards & highlights
All Individual Drugs Already Approved
Approved for 10 Other Conditions
Pivotal Trial
No Placebo-Only Group

Summary

This trial is testing whether neoadjuvant endocrine therapy with fulvestrant or the combination of anastrozole and fulvestrant is better than anastrozole when given before surgery to shrink the cancer and stop it from growing.

Who is the study for?
Postmenopausal women with Stage II-III estrogen receptor positive breast cancer, who have not started any treatment and are planning to undergo surgery. Participants must be at least 18 years old, have a specific score indicating the presence of estrogen receptors in their tumor cells, and meet certain health criteria based on blood tests and physical exams.
What is being tested?
The trial is testing whether taking fulvestrant alone or combined with anastrozole before surgery is more effective than just anastrozole for shrinking tumors. Anastrozole lowers estrogen to inhibit tumor growth and is standard care pre-surgery; fulvestrant decreases estrogen receptors in tumor cells but isn't approved for early-stage use yet.
What are the potential side effects?
Possible side effects include hot flashes, joint pain, nausea, fatigue, bone weakness or loss (osteoporosis), mood changes, vaginal dryness or bleeding. Fulvestrant may also cause injection site reactions such as pain or inflammation.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

You may be eligible if you check “Yes” for the criteria below
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I am able to care for myself and perform daily activities.
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I am postmenopausal, confirmed by surgery, lack of periods for a year or hormone levels.
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My breast cancer is at a stage where surgery is aimed to remove the tumor and it can be felt or measured to be at least 2cm.
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My breast cancer was confirmed with a needle biopsy.
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I am a woman aged 18 or older.

Exclusion Criteria

You may be eligible for the trial if you check “No” for criteria below:
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I have not gone through menopause.
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My breast cancer involves redness of the breast or skin invasion.
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I have had a surgical biopsy for my breast cancer.
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My tumor is either low in estrogen receptors or HER2 positive.
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I have not received any treatment for my cancer before joining this study.
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I have had invasive breast cancer or cancer in the opposite breast.
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I have not taken hormone replacement therapy or similar medications in the last week.

Timeline

Screening ~ 3 weeks
Treatment ~ Varies
Follow Up ~up to 5 years
This trial's timeline: 3 weeks for screening, Varies for treatment, and up to 5 years for reporting.

Treatment Details

Awards & Highlights

All Individual Drugs Already Approved
Therapies where all constituent drugs have already been approved are likely to have better-understood side effect profiles.
Approved for 10 Other Conditions
This treatment demonstrated efficacy for 10 other conditions.
Pivotal Trial
The final step before approval, pivotal trials feature drugs that have already shown basic safety & efficacy.
No Placebo-Only Group
All patients enrolled in this study will receive some form of active treatment.

Trial Design

3Treatment groups
Active Control
Group I: Arm III (anastrozole and fulvestrant)Active Control2 Interventions
Patients receive anastrozole daily in combination with fulvestrant on days 1 and 15 of cycle 1, and on day 1 of cycles 2-6 followed by surgery. A treatment cycle is 4 weeks in length. After completion of analysis of endocrine resistant data, patients will continue treatment as defined in the protocol.
Group II: Arm I (anastrozole)Active Control1 Intervention
Patients receive anastrozole daily for 6 cycles followed by surgery. A treatment cycle is 4 weeks in length. After completion of analysis of endocrine resistant data, patients will continue treatment as defined in the protocol.
Group III: Arm II (fulvestrant)Active Control1 Intervention
Patients receive fulvestrant on days 1 and 15 of cycle 1 and day 1 of cycles 2-6 followed by surgery. A treatment cycle is 4 weeks in length. After completion of analysis of endocrine resistant data, patients will continue treatment as defined in the protocol.

Find a Location

Who is running the clinical trial?

Alliance for Clinical Trials in OncologyLead Sponsor
516 Previous Clinical Trials
219,448 Total Patients Enrolled
75 Trials studying Breast Cancer
40,143 Patients Enrolled for Breast Cancer
National Cancer Institute (NCI)NIH
13,906 Previous Clinical Trials
41,010,576 Total Patients Enrolled
942 Trials studying Breast Cancer
1,443,183 Patients Enrolled for Breast Cancer
Cynthia Ma, MD, PhDStudy ChairWashington University School of Medicine
1 Previous Clinical Trials

Media Library

Anastrozole (Hormone Therapy) Clinical Trial Eligibility Overview. Trial Name: NCT01953588 — Phase 3
~95 spots leftby Aug 2025