Clinical trial earns Nikka "a win" in breast cancer battle

[Allina Health Newsroom, September 29, 2025] In late summer 2024, Nikka Ross received a call with news no patient wants to hear.

“She said, ‘I’m sorry to tell you, you have been diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer,’” Nikka recalled about the phone conversation. 

After the initial shock wore off, Nikka wondered to herself, “Can I beat this?”

She did — but it took faith in her doctor’s research and an innovative clinical trial to make it happen.

Following her diagnosis, Nikka was connected to Maddy Bonifas, RN, an oncology nurse navigator who helped organize her treatment, and Daniel Carlson, DO, a medical oncologist from Allina Health Cancer Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis. 

Triple-negative breast cancer is a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer, and treatment can be intense. Nikka’s case was made even more challenging because she had previously experienced heart failure, one of the risks with chemotherapy traditionally used to treat triple-negative breast cancer. 

Nikka was very apprehensive, but Dr. Carlson had ideas — and data to support them. 

“What I like about Dr. Carlson is when he came in, he had already done his research,” Nikka said. "He’s a numbers guy and I’m a numbers person.”

“We discussed two separate clinical trials available to us, where she wouldn't necessarily have to receive that specific chemotherapy that could put her at risk,” Dr. Carlson said.  

Nikka was enrolled in the SCARLET trial, which used de-escalated chemotherapy coupled with immunotherapy to treat her cancer. She had five rounds of chemotherapy to shrink her tumor before surgery. 

Breast exams indicated it was working. Surgical pathology confirmed it.  

“It came back clean,” Nikka said. “I got a win.”

“It was completely gone,” Dr. Carlson added. “A pathological complete response — that’s the best possible outcome with triple-negative breast cancer.”

Dr. Carlson says having patients like Nikka who are willing to try — or prefer — clinical trials is how Allina Health Cancer Institute is making strides against diseases like triple-negative breast cancer. 

“I'm happy that I was able to participate, so they can have data that will help someone else down the line,” Nikka said.

Posted on September 29, 2025 in Allina Newsroom, Abbott Northwestern Hospital, breast cancer