Abu Dhabi has achieved a global medical milestone after doctors at Burjeel Cancer Institute became the first in the world to administer a next-generation breast cancer treatment in a clinical setting.
The treatment, called Camizestrant, was given to a woman in her forties with advanced breast cancer after doctors detected signs that her cancer was becoming resistant to conventional therapy, even before scans showed any worsening of the disease.
The breakthrough was made under the supervision of the Department of Health, Abu Dhabi (DoH), highlighting the emirate’s growing role in precision medicine and advanced cancer care.
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The patient had hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer, one of the most common forms of the disease. While many patients initially respond well to hormone therapy, some cancers gradually become resistant to treatment.
In this case, doctors used a blood test known as circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) monitoring to detect an ESR1 gene mutation. This mutation can allow cancer cells to continue growing despite hormone therapy.
According to healthcare experts, ESR1 mutations are found in less than 5 per cent of patients at diagnosis but can develop in about 40 per cent of patients during treatment with hormone blockers and CDK4/6 inhibitors.
What makes this case significant is that the mutation was detected before it appeared on scans or caused symptoms. Researchers said such changes can become visible in blood tests around six months before disease progression is seen through imaging.
This early warning allowed doctors to switch the patient’s treatment to Camizestrant, a next-generation oral medicine designed to target both normal and mutated estrogen receptors.
The patient is currently clinically stable and continues to be closely monitored by a multidisciplinary oncology team, according to Burjeel Cancer Institute.
Dr Noura Al Ghaithi, undersecretary of the Department of Health, Abu Dhabi said that the future of healthcare lies in identifying changes early and intervening before a patient’s condition worsens.
She said enabling the first global administration of Camizestrant in a clinical setting reflects Abu Dhabi’s vision of building an advanced healthcare system focused on prevention, early detection and personalised care.
Prof Humaid Al Shamsi, CEO of Burjeel Cancer Institute, said the milestone represents more than the introduction of a new drug.
“We are now able to detect treatment resistance at a very early stage and intervene before any radiological or clinical signs of disease progression emerge,” he said.
He added that continuous molecular monitoring allows doctors to make more personalised treatment decisions based on the biology of each patient’s cancer.
The treatment approach is supported by findings from the global SERENA-6 clinical trial. The study found that switching eligible patients to Camizestrant reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 56 per cent compared with continuing conventional hormone therapy.
The trial also showed that patients receiving Camizestrant experienced longer disease control in 16 months compared with 9.2 months for those who remained on conventional treatment.
Healthcare experts said the milestone means patients in the UAE may increasingly be able to access advanced cancer treatments closer to home without needing to travel abroad.
Source: Khaleej Times