Optimum anthracycline-based chemotherapy for early breast cancer

Adjuvant chemotherapy improves the overall survival of women treated after surgery for early breast cancer. Several trials have suggested that anthracycline-containing regimens are more effective than those that do not contain anthracyclines. A modest overall benefit has also been confirmed by the Early Breast Cancer Trialists' Collaborative Group overview. Newer agents, such as the taxanes, are now being tested in the adjuvant setting in randomised trials. The control group of such studies should receive the optimum standard treatment. There are several anthracycline-based regimens in common use, varying in terms of the type of anthracycline used, the dose, and drug scheduling. We review the available evidence and consider whether the optimum anthracycline-containing chemotherapy schedule has now been identified.