About 15-20% of breast cancers are triple negative.

 

Triple negative breast cancer means that cancer cells do not carry the three most common targets for treatment: 

 

estrogen receptors

progesterone receptors

growth factor HER2neu

 

As a result, triple negative tumors often do not respond to the common cancer treatments targeting these receptors. Triple negative breast cancer can be particularly aggressive and more likely to recur. More research is needed to better understand these types of tumors and to develop targeted treatments to find a cure and prevent relapses. 

 

There are currently no targeted treatments for triple negative breast cancer. As more people realize that there are many different types of breast cancer, more research and attention can shift towards developing cures for aggressive forms of the disease like triple negative.