Effect of eribulin on patients with metastatic breast cancer: multicenter retrospective observational study in Taiwan

The aim of this study was to confirm the therapeutic role of eribulin on Taiwanese women with metastatic breast cancer. This retrospective study examined 449 females who received eribulin between March 2014 and June 2017 at 14 hospitals in Taiwan for treatment of locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer. The survival rate at 24 months was 57.2% (95% CI 51.0-62.9%) and the median time to treatment failure (TTF) was 3.91 months (95% CI 3.45-3.94). A total of 175 patients (40.1%) received eribulin for fewer than 90 days and the others received it for 90 days or more. Eight patients (1.83%) had complete remission, 82 (18.8%) had partial remission, 202 (46.3%) had stable disease, and 144 (33.0%) had progressive disease (PD). Patients' tumors with the luminal A subtype had a significantly better objective response rate. Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated that hormone receptor positivity, luminal A subtype, receipt of eribulin as the 1st to 3rd line therapy, and metastasis to fewer than 4 organs were significantly associated with longer TTF. Stepwise multivariate analysis showed that only receipt of eribulin as the 1st to 3rd line therapy was significantly associated with TTF (HR 1.49, p < 0.001). All toxicities were manageable and only 18 patients (4.1%) discontinued treatment due to adverse events. Eribulin appears to have better efficacy and cause fewer adverse events, especially neutropenia, in Taiwanese women than Western women.