Classical Taxane versus the New Generation, Nab-Paclitaxel Chemotherapy in the Treatment of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer (BC) remains the most invasive diagnosed cancers among female, affecting 25% of total number of cancers worldwide. Systematic chemotherapies still remain one of the effective treatments for BC. One of the common and powerful chemotherapies that have been used in the past decade is taxane. Taxane are a class of anticancer compounds that are known to cause cell cycle arrest and apoptosis induction (cell death). They are used for the treatment of malignant tumors specifically BC along with other chemotherapies such as anthracycline. However, the neurotoxic effects that are associated with the use of taxane are still challenging. Recently, nanoparticle albumin bound taxane (nab-paclitaxel) was developed, resulting in lowering of the side effects that are associated with the use of taxane and enhancing its delivery to the targeted cancer cells. Nab-paclitaxel has been subjected to several clinical trials to evaluate its efficacy in the treatment of various types of cancers including BC. The results indicated that nab-paclitaxel showed an improved efficacy and promising outcomes in the treatment of various forms of BC. This review focuses on the comparison of classical taxane to the new generation, nab-paclitaxel chemotherapy, with emphasis on their comparative efficacy in metastatic BC (MBC) and triple negative metastatic BC (TNMBC) treatment, concluding that nab-paclitaxel has improved efficacy, safety data and with a more convenient administration confirming an optimal treatment option for patients in both cases. Future work is needed to optimize dosing schedules and combination regimens of nab-paclitaxel, which could broaden the clinical utility of this agent.