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NCCN Announces Two New Breast Cancer Resources

JENKINTOWN, Pa., December 6, 2005 — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) is proud to offer two new tools in the fight against breast cancer: the latest version of the NCCN Breast Cancer Clinical Practice Guidelines and the Breast Cancer chapter of the NCCN Drugs & Biologics Compendium™. These resources highlight cutting-edge developments in the treatment of breast cancer and represent the recognized standard for clinical policy in oncology in both community and academic practice settings.

In a major change from previous versions, NCCN recently modified its Breast Cancer Clinical Practice Guidelines for selection of adjuvant chemotherapy to look first at HER-2 and hormone receptor status and second at nodal status and tumor size. This reflects the evolving emphasis on responsiveness to therapy, new data on the efficacy of trastuzumab (Herceptin) in the adjuvant setting and the increasing importance of hormonal therapies. NCCN also expanded the adjuvant therapy regimens to include the addition of trastuzumab for patients with HER-2 positive breast cancer. For metastatic disease, new regimens including paclitaxel (Taxol) plus bevacizumab (Avastin) and albumin-bound paclitaxel (Abraxane) were added to the existing list of appropriate treatment options. NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™ are developed and updated through a consensus-driven process with explicit review of the scientific evidence by multidisciplinary panels of expert physicians from NCCN institutions.

The eagerly-awaited Breast Cancer chapter of the NCCN Drugs & Biologics Compendium contains authoritative, scientifically derived information designed to support decision making about the appropriate use of drug and biologic therapy for patients with breast cancer, including FDA-approved indications as well as those beyond FDA labeling. All recommendations are derived from the NCCN Breast Cancer Clinical Practice Guidelines. Like the Guidelines, the Compendium spans the continuum of cancer care from early stage to advanced stage disease, and from supportive to palliative care.

Both the new Breast Cancer Clinical Practice Guidelines and the Breast Cancer Compendium chapter are available, free of charge, in electronic formats on www.nccn.org.