North–South Summit 2026 | Professor Leiping Wang: HER2-Positive Metastatic Breast Cancer—Has the First-Line ADC Era Truly Arrived?
With the release of data from studies such as DESTINY-Breast09 (DB-09), antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) are gaining increasing prominence in the first-line treatment of HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC). However, while the traditional THP regimen (trastuzumab + pertuzumab + taxane) remains firmly established as the guideline-preferred standard, the question remains: has the “era of ADC dominance” truly begun? During the “Deep Dive” session at the 8th North–South Breast Cancer Forum, Professor Leiping Wang from Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center addressed this question. She emphasized that although ADCs have opened the door to first-line therapy with impressive progression-free survival (PFS) benefits, their full integration into clinical practice still requires further validation, particularly in the context of refined disease management and treatment sequencing.









