Clinical outcomes of Sacituzumab Govitecan in metastatic breast cancer: evidence of survival and quality of life from a systematic review and meta analysis

Introduction: Sacituzumab Govitecan is an antibody–drug conjugate (ADC) consisting of a humanized anti-Trop-2 protein monoclonal antibody linked with the active metabolite of irinotecan. It is indicated for the treatment of metastatic triple-negative breast cancer and hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. The aim of this study was to identify and evaluate the most reliable survival and quality-of-life parameters associated with treatment using Sacituzumab Govitecan in patients with triple-negative breast cancer.

Materials and methods: A consistent and well-defined search and selection protocol was developed to identify eligible articles. The search criteria included publications from the last five years that were freely accessible in full text. The selected publication types comprised meta-analyses, systematic reviews, clinical studies, comparative studies, observational studies, and randomized controlled trials. The entire procedure followed the guidelines of PRISMA 2020. The search strategy employed the most relevant keywords combined with appropriate Boolean operators to ensure a comprehensive and systematic literature retrieval.

Results: Treatment with Sacituzumab Govitecan improved median progression-free survival, and the presence of an objective response to therapy was higher in patients receiving Sacituzumab Govitecan. However, the rates of adverse events and treatment-discontinuation-related adverse events were also higher. A comparison was performed against chemotherapy. Sacituzumab Govitecan led to significantly longer progression-free survival than chemotherapy among patients with advanced triple‑negative breast cancer who were not candidates for treatment with PD‑1 inhibitors or PD‑L1 inhibitors.

Conclusion: Continued efforts to develop therapies for all stages of breast cancer should be implemented, on the one hand, from the perspective of the substantial scientific progress achieved and the increasingly detailed understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer cells. On the other hand, screening programs should not be overlooked, together with the development of public health policies aimed at expanding access to these simple detection methods wherever they are needed.