Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 7, 2026

Studying Triple Negative Breast Cancer Using Orthotopic Breast Cancer Model
Published on: March 20, 2020
Triple Negative Breast Cancer With Choroidal Metastasis Responsive to Sacituzumab Govitecan and Radiation Therapy
Nellie Nafissi1, Aditya Mahadevan2, Elaine Chiao3
1Division of Hematology/Oncology, University of California Irvine Health, Orange, California, USA.
Background:
Orbital metastases are rare in patients with breast cancer. However, medical management of orbital metastases is limited by the inability of treatment options to penetrate the blood-brain barrier. In patients with triple negative breast cancer (TNBC), these treatment options are further limited. Sacituzumab govitecan, an antibody-drug conjugate, has emerged as a promising agent for metastatic TNBC. However, to date, patients with central nervous system (CNS) disease have been excluded from corresponding clinical trials, making the efficacy of sacituzumab govitecan in patients with orbital metastases unclear.
Case:
A 61-year-old female was initially diagnosed with a left breast hormone receptor positive invasive ductal carcinoma, receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy with doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, and docetaxel and a partial mastectomy. Several years later, the patient presented with a cough and was subsequently diagnosed with metastatic triple negative breast cancer with hepatic, osseous, and right supraclavicular and thoracic nodal metastases. Concurrently, the patient noted floaters in her vision, later found to be consistent with orbital metastases. The patient received radiation therapy to both eyes and was started on Sacituzumab govitecan. Following cycle 1, the ophthalmic exam showed a dramatic decrease in the size of choroidal metastases.
Conclusion:
This case report documents the first case of orbital metastases successfully treated with radiation therapy and sacituzumab govitecan. As such, this case highlights the importance of sacituzumab govitecan as a potentially effective option for TNBC patients with CNS disease. Further studies and real-world data are needed to investigate the efficacy of combined radiotherapy and sacituzumab govitecan toward ocular metastases.
Related Concept Videos
Cancer Therapies
However, cancer treatments can pose several challenges, as therapies used to kill cancer cells are generally also toxic to normal cells. Moreover, cancer cells mutate rapidly and can develop resistance to chemical agents or radiation therapy. Besides, all types of cancer cells may not respond to the same therapy. Some cancer cells respond to one...
Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
Biological Effects of Radiation
Metastasis
Epithelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition
The epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition or EMT is a developmental process commonly observed in wound healing, embryogenesis, and cancer metastasis. EMT is induced by transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) or receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) ligands, which further...
Radiation: Applications
The average...
Scalar and Vector Triple Products
The scalar triple product is the dot product of a vector with the cross product of two vectors....

